Ok. I'm not going to lie. The first two weeks after Joey was born were hard. I struggled with baby blues, and towards the end became slightly worried that it would become postpartum depression. Literally, every night around 5 pm I would want to either sit down and cry, or I would become very anxious and couldn't sit still. I would also get hit randomly throughout the day, and would get very anxious about Joey's well being and would check on him literally every 30 seconds. He had really, really bad diaper rash (that later we discovered was being caused by me eating dairy products) and would scream anytime we changed his diaper. Therefore, every time we changed his diaper I would fall apart because there was nothing I could do to make him feel better. The first time he was crying non-stop because he was tired, I finally put him in his swing and his swing rocked him to sleep. I felt like the worst mom ever because a machine had just put my baby to sleep when I couldn't. In other words, the first two weeks were not fun. (Also, in other words, you're not alone if this happened/is happening to you.)
Thankfully, I read a pamphlet the hospital gave us that said to wait until the end of the first two weeks, and if you were still feeling depressed to call your healthcare provider. I got lucky because at exactly 2 weeks after he was born, my baby blues went away.
Thankfully, I read a pamphlet the hospital gave us that said to wait until the end of the first two weeks, and if you were still feeling depressed to call your healthcare provider. I got lucky because at exactly 2 weeks after he was born, my baby blues went away.
However, there were things I did that I felt helped a little (some a lot).
1 - Take a shower. Everyday. Even if you don't get your hair done or don't get dressed in real clothes after, take a shower. There were two times after Neal went back to work that I had someone come over just to watch Joey while I took a shower.
2 - "Sleeping every time the baby sleeps" is not realistic. Eventually, you have no clothes left, and your kitchen is unsanitary because of how many dirty dishes you have. Plus, you feel like all you do is feed the baby, so you feel like you're kind of losing your identity. I found it helpful to do one "chore" each day. One day during one of his naps, I'd do the dishes, and the next I'd do a load of laundry. It helped me feel like I was still a normal person who did normal things around the house.
3 - Following #2, take at least 1 nap a day while your baby is. One nap makes a TON of difference.
3 - Go for walks. Seriously, the fresh air will do you and your baby good (plus, it might put your little one to sleep). If its too cold, do some light stretching or something. Move. Again, you will feel more like a normal human being (and you'll feel like you're at least doing SOMETHING to get back in shape when you're not allowed to do much).
4 - Show affection to your spouse - cuddle, kiss, whatever. Physically, it will help release "good-feeling" hormones that will help you feel better. It will also help you remember why you had this little human being in the first place.
5 - Rely on the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Remember at the beginning of the post when I talked about falling apart because the swing put Joey to sleep? When that happened (it was about at 1 week) I literally got down on my knees, said "Heavenly Father" and sobbed...for about five minutes. I didn't say a single word. But after I was done, I felt 100 times better, and I suddenly knew exactly what I needed to do to help Joey sleep better and to help myself feel better (pull him out of the swing, lay him down on the floor, and lay down next to him with my hand on his chest). That night, I very specifically prayed that through the Atonement I would be enabled to know what I needed to do, and that I would feel better. The next week went a lot better, partially because every time I would start to feel bad, I would say a prayer for help. I still had my down moments, but they weren't as "down" as they were previously.
What about you moms? What did you do to help yourself get through those first weeks?
1 - Take a shower. Everyday. Even if you don't get your hair done or don't get dressed in real clothes after, take a shower. There were two times after Neal went back to work that I had someone come over just to watch Joey while I took a shower.
2 - "Sleeping every time the baby sleeps" is not realistic. Eventually, you have no clothes left, and your kitchen is unsanitary because of how many dirty dishes you have. Plus, you feel like all you do is feed the baby, so you feel like you're kind of losing your identity. I found it helpful to do one "chore" each day. One day during one of his naps, I'd do the dishes, and the next I'd do a load of laundry. It helped me feel like I was still a normal person who did normal things around the house.
3 - Following #2, take at least 1 nap a day while your baby is. One nap makes a TON of difference.
3 - Go for walks. Seriously, the fresh air will do you and your baby good (plus, it might put your little one to sleep). If its too cold, do some light stretching or something. Move. Again, you will feel more like a normal human being (and you'll feel like you're at least doing SOMETHING to get back in shape when you're not allowed to do much).
4 - Show affection to your spouse - cuddle, kiss, whatever. Physically, it will help release "good-feeling" hormones that will help you feel better. It will also help you remember why you had this little human being in the first place.
5 - Rely on the Atonement of Jesus Christ. Remember at the beginning of the post when I talked about falling apart because the swing put Joey to sleep? When that happened (it was about at 1 week) I literally got down on my knees, said "Heavenly Father" and sobbed...for about five minutes. I didn't say a single word. But after I was done, I felt 100 times better, and I suddenly knew exactly what I needed to do to help Joey sleep better and to help myself feel better (pull him out of the swing, lay him down on the floor, and lay down next to him with my hand on his chest). That night, I very specifically prayed that through the Atonement I would be enabled to know what I needed to do, and that I would feel better. The next week went a lot better, partially because every time I would start to feel bad, I would say a prayer for help. I still had my down moments, but they weren't as "down" as they were previously.
What about you moms? What did you do to help yourself get through those first weeks?
