Perinatal Anxiety & Depression Awareness

At Eastential Acupuncture and Chinese medicine Melbourne we placed great emphasis on the importance of postnatal care. We believe that postnatal care is just as important as the care given during fertility, preconception health and pregnancy. One of the greatest concern during postnatal care is the emotional ups and downs of coping with a newborn or a new addition to the family unit. Some women transition into motherhood with ease, others struggle both physically and mentally with the needs of a newborn and family. Women without support from immediate family or community often feel lonely and helpless which may then lead to anxiety or depression.

Perinatal Anxiety and Depression Australia (PANDA) is an organisation that supports women, men and families across Australia that suffers from postnatal depression and anxiety. This week PANDA had launched an awareness week to start a conversation about this condition affecting 1 in 5 expecting or new mothers, 1 in 10 expecting expecting or new fathers and affects around 100,000 families across Australia every year. An excerpt from the information download from PANDA-

Talking about it

Perinatal anxiety and depression is a serious health condition. It can affect any new or expecting parent and does not discriminate. It is nothing to be ashamed of, but many new mums and dads find it hard to talk about it. Expecting and new parents telling others about their struggles, or admitting they need help and seeking treatment or advice is not a sign of weakness. It shows that they want the best for themselves and their family.

Recognising perinatal anxiety and depression

Perinatal anxiety and depression can be difficult to recognise for a whole range of reasons. Symptoms are often dismissed as normal parts of pregnancy or early parenthood. Shame and stigma can lead to a ‘mask of coping’. Symptoms can look different for each person.

Signs may include:

• Feeling sad, low, or crying for no obvious reason

• Persistent, generalised worry, often focused on fears for the health or wellbeing of your baby

• Being nervous, ‘on edge’, or panicky

• Being easily annoyed or irritated

• Withdrawing from friends and family

• Difficulties sleeping, even when your baby is sleeping

• Abrupt mood swings

• Feeling constantly tired and lacking energy

• Physical symptoms like nausea, vomiting, cold sweats, lack of appetite

• Having little or no interest in the things that normally bring you joy

• Fear of being alone or with others

• Finding it difficult to focus, concentrate or remember

• Increased alcohol or drug use

• Panic attacks (racing heart, palpitations, shortness of breath, shaking or feeling physically ‘detached’ from your surroundings)

• Developing obsessive or compulsive behaviours

• Thoughts of death, suicide or harming your baby

Postnatal psychosis

Postnatal psychosis is a rare but serious illness that affects one to two new mums in every 1000 and can put both mother and baby at risk. It almost always requires hospital admission. The symptoms often arrive suddenly and can include extreme mood swings, significant behaviour changes and loss of touch with reality.

If you suspect a new mum you know may have postnatal psychosis, you can:

• take her to a doctor

• take her to the nearest hospital emergency department

• call PANDA’s National Helpline – 1300 726 306

If you or someone close to you experiences any symptoms or feelings that worry you for two weeks or more, please seek relevant support as soon as possible. The quicker that person seeks some support, the sooner she or he will feel better (information supplied by PANDA)

Postnatal Series - Five Key Points To Be Mindful Of In Postnatal Care

Five key points to be mindful of, in your first 40 days of your postnatal care passage and why it matters to embrace this “Fourth Trimester” as part of your motherhood journey.

1/ POSTNATAL CARE MATTERS

Postnatal Care is about self-care after birth and preserving the body and reproductive health for future pregnancies, and long term wellness.  This allows the mother to adapt fluidly to the changing environment, as well as maintaining and increasing her reserve and nourishment for the baby and herself.  The idea is to prevent the mother from continuously depleting her own reserve, whilst maintaining and improving her health and well-being, in order to tackle the ebbs and flows of motherhood.

2/ POST BABY BODY

Pregnancy has such a deep effect on a woman, not just physically, but mentally as well. Women tend to forget the simple act of resting and giving the body time to heal and recover.  Whether you like it or not, your core will be compromised after baby is born. You do not have to be immobile like a vegetable during the 6-weeks postpartum period, but as soon as you feel rested and more energized, start working on deepening your breathing with core and pelvic floor connection, joint movements to get your circulation going, light stretches and some gentle walking. It’s important to listen to your body. Pushing your body too fast and too soon may slow down the recovery process.

3/ NOURISHMENT AND NUTRITION

It is crucial that in the first 40 days after birth, the body is nourished with warm, energy boosting, blood building, easy to digest and simple cooked meals as much as possible.  Good nourishing meals with simple ingredients and understanding what it does for the body is the key to self-care after birth.  Meals are prepared to aid digestion, to warm the belly and heart and, to regenerate and build resources that are depleted.  Diet during the first 40 days is about restoring and nourishing your health and body back to balance. Pre-planning your meals, cooking larger portions and freezing them, is an efficient way to eat well without compromising on the quality of nutrition.

4/ EXERCISE

Rest and recovery is key, but rebuilding physical and mental strength and flexibility is equally important. Work with a trained professional who is educated and experienced in postpartum specific issues like Diastasis Recti (abdominal muscle separation), dysfunctional pelvic floor, hip and lower back pain, and unstable sacroiliac joints, to name a few. Functional programs like Postnatal Yoga, Mum and Bub Yoga, and Postnatal Pilates are great, as they also act as bridge before resuming your regular sporting activities.

5/ MENTAL HEALTH & POSTNATAL DEPRESSION

Don’t be afraid to ask for help.  Birth trauma and perinatal anxiety is very real!  According to PANDA (Perinatal Anxiety & Depression Australia), 1 in 7 new mothers and up to 1 in 10 new fathers experience postnatal anxiety and depression in Australia. The other more extreme cases of Postnatal Depression called Postnatal Psychosis affects one to two women in every one thousand, after birth.

Postnatal care is often overlooked in the entire pregnancy journey.  Women are often concern about fertility, looking after themselves during pregnancy, and the best course of birthing.  These are extremely vital steps. However, women should not forget that the journey of looking after oneself should not stop after the birth of the baby.  There should be a continuation of that ‘vital care’ in order to rebuild, restore and rebalance the body, not only for the health of your baby and but also for further reproduction, slow down the process of ageing, and for better health further in life.  Postnatal care matters for the restoration of your health in the present and also in the future.

What more information on how Chinese medicine diet therapy or the postpartum herbal pantry kit to aid in your postnatal recovery?  We offer a FREE 15 minute consultation in our clinic. Come chat with us. Simply BOOK ONLINE or email us on eastentialtcm@gmail.com and we will endeavour to attend to your queries within 48 hours.

Postnatal Series - Dietary & Lifestyle in Postnatal Care

As emphasised from the last blog post, postnatal care is about self-care after birth and preserving the body and reproductive health for future pregnancies and long term wellness.  What is it that constitutes ‘good’ nourishment from the TCM perspective and exercise during the first 40 days of your postnatal recovery care? 

Good nourishment for postnatal recovery is about eating meals using a handful of ingredients without compromising on taste.  It is crucial that in the first 40 days after birth, the body is nourished with warm, energy boosting, blood building, easy to digest and simple cooked meals as much as possible.  Good nourishing meals with simple ingredients and the understanding of what it does for the body, is the key to self-care after birth.  Think of postnatal care as recovering from a cold but taken up a few notches.  The body is more worn out from birthing than you realise, and resources taken out of your body for breastfeeding, plus the demands of being a new mother can take a huge toll on the body.  Therefore, it is important that meals are prepared to aid digestion, warming to the belly and heart and, generates and builds resources that have been depleted.  The diet during the first 40 days is about restoring and nourishing your health and body back to balance.

In reality, especially in Australia, having a helping hand after childbirth can be challenging.  Unless you have a community, mother/mother-in-law, sister, midwife or a postpartum doula that you could get support from, the journey of postnatal care rests entirely on you.  This may seem daunting at first, but with some planning during the last few weeks of your pregnancy (34-39 weeks), you can organize meals, make broths to freeze, stock up the pantry and make a list of simple, easy to cook meals whilst taking care of your newborn yourself and your family.

Here are some suggestions on ingredients and food preparation from the Chinese medicine diet therapy:

Meal suggestions

Congee (traditional Chinese porridge made from rice that helps to strengthen digestion, boost energy and aid in recovery), stew, soups and everything slow cooked.

Methods of cooking

Slowly and gently simmer in a slow cooker, rice cooker, in the oven or over the stove top. We would highly recommend using the first three methods on the list – slow cooker, rice cooker (there are modern rice cookers that cooks congee at a touch of a button) and/or in the oven, as this will allow you to put all the ingredients into a pot and walk away from it.  Being efficient and effective, without compromising on nutrition is key to postpartum recovery! Simply throw in prepared ingredients (this can be done beforehand and frozen) into a cooker, add broth or stock (again, this can be done easily beforehand and frozen) and press a button and in a few hours… et viola! You will have a meal cooked for you whilst having the time to rest and attend to your new born throughout the day.  You can also cook a delicious congee the night before in the slow cooker. There’s nothing like waking up to the aroma of delicious congee for breakfast.  The main idea is to prepare the main ingredients beforehand and freeze them, cook in bulk for as many portions you can, and freeze them, in the event you are just too exhausted to cook anything.

Eat more of

These food suggestions help to build Blood, restore energy and strengthen the Spleen/Stomach organ to aid in the process of building Blood.

Simple grains eg. Rice, organic 5 grain rice (brown rice, red rice, buckwheat, millet, black rice), oats, barley, wheat, bran

Vegetables – beetroot, button mushrooms, cabbage, celery, dark leafy greens, shitake mushroom, spinach, watercress, bok choy, choi sum, kai lan, pumpkin, potato, sweet potato, yam

Fruit (hard fruits preferably stewed and eaten warm) – apples, apricot, date, fig, grape, peach, raspberry

Beans – black bean, aduki and kidney beans

Seeds – black sesame

Fish – sardine, tuna, mussel

Consume in small amounts

Meat eg. beef, chicken, pork and lamb.  As meat takes a bit of work to digest in the body, during the first 40 days after birth, the body is considered deficient and weak.  Hence it is advisable to consume only a small amount of meat which is preferably stewed, or slow cooked to aid digestion.

Avoid

Anything and everything cold including cold drinks, raw food, cold salads, smoothies and ice-cream

Chinese herbs to add into soup, stew or congee

Dang Gui, Bai Shao, Gou Zi Qi, Dang Shen, Huang Qi, Wu Zhu Yu, Chuang Xiong, Da Zao – these herbs are used to build Blood, boost energy, restore the essence and rebalance the body’s health and aids in milk production.  In Chinese medicine, breast milk is the extension of Blood.  The idea is, if you have a continuous diet and herbs that help build Blood, then there will be ample supply of breast milk flowing from the breast.

Sipping warm tea

A medley of Long Yan Rou, Da Zao & Gou Zi Qi - this is brewed and saved in a thermos that you can sip throughout the day to boost energy and blood production

If you are in doubt about where to source these recommended Chinese herbs, we can source a postpartum pantry kit for you that are prepacked and ready to use in stock, soup and stew.  Send us an email and we will be happy to organise a kit for you.

Besides diet, exercise is also important. Angeline Liew, an internationally accredited Prenatal and Postnatal Yoga educator from Prana Yoga KL says, “Almost everyone wants a “quick-fix” to get their pre-pregnancy bodies back...but every body is different, and everyone recovers at a different rate. Whilst as a general rule of thumb, it is best to honor the first 40 days of post partum with as much rest and recovery as possible, it largely depends on the individual. Restoring and strengthening the body after baby, requires mindfulness and awareness of what the body has gone through. This includes post partum specific issues like Diastasis Recti (abdominal muscle separation), weakened or dysfunctional pelvic floor, hip and lower back pain, unstable sacroiliac joint, and stiff shoulders, to name a few. Rest well, and when you’re ready, embark on a postpartum strengthening and rehabilitation program with a trained Postnatal Yoga or Postnatal Pilates professional. Give your body some love and compassion. Being in a hurry can sometimes slow down the recovery process”.

What more information on how Chinese medicine diet therapy or the postpartum herbal pantry kit to aid in your postnatal recovery?  We offer a FREE 15 minute consultation in our clinic. Come chat with us.  Simply BOOK ONLINE or email us on eastentialtcm@gmail.com and we will endeavour to attend to your queries within 48 hours.