Post Natal Articles
Articles that are especially for new mums! Your body goes through such enormous changes during pregnancy and needs a little TLC following the birth of your baby. BellyBelly's Post-Natal articles will help you understand how you can help your body during this time and will give you an idea of what you might expect from your body post-baby.
A Mother's Diary From a Mother & Baby Unit
When everything fell into a spiraling heap in 2002, I went to a Melbourne mother and baby unit with my then almost 5 month old daughter. The psychologist I saw there suggested I put my thoughts to paper to help, which I did. After a recent spring clean, I found the letter and almost bawled my eyes out at what I wrote to myself. Here's what I wrote.
Best Advice, Worst Advice - Mums Tell!
If you've had a baby then you would be familiar with the bombardment of advice offered by friends, relatives and even strangers! I asked some BellyBelly mums to reveal the good, the bad and the ugly. You'll have a laugh and pick-up some great tips at the same time!
Boredom Busters for Mums
After the birth of your baby, you may find that you experience feelings of boredom, perhaps due to baby sleeping for longer periods of time (well, for the first few months anyway!) or maybe you find staying at home all day with baby makes you feel like you are on autopilot.
Breastfeeding & Returning To Work
Breastfeeding has been going well: your baby is thriving and happy. But now you are returning to work and feel sad at the prospect of weaning your baby. Take heart, returning to paid work doesn’t mean you have to stop breastfeeding! Find out all the ins and outs of breastfeeding and returning to work.
Breastfeeding FAQ's
New to breastfeeding? Need a quick refresh? Here are some FAQ's that you might find helpful when starting out breastfeeding your baby.
Breastfeeding Problems - Treatments for Common Problems
The following describes the use of some treatments for breastfeeding mothers who are having various problems, from engorgement to increasing your milk supply.
Chucking a Mummy Sickie
I sent a message to my husband, 'I'm chucking a sickie tomorrow.' He replied sympathetically as to my bad day, to which I retorted, 'I'm deadly serious. I'm taking a sickie tomorrow.'
Coming Home From A Mother & Baby Unit - Tips For Coping
Leaving the safety of a hospital or a Mother and Baby Unit and returning to the place where life was difficult can be very stressful. Here are some great tips from a PND survivor to help make this time a less stressful one.
De-Clutter Your House - 10 Easy Tips
Don’t fret, there is hope! It didn’t get there overnight and won’t disappear overnight, so you need to be realistic about the time it will take to address it.
Diary of a Mum - Ambah
Ambah is a stay at home Mum. She has one son Aidyn, who is 18 months old.
Diary of a Mum - Janelle
Janelle is a part time stay at home mum and has one son, Matthew who is 8 months old.She also helps out on BellyBelly as a moderator.
Diary of a Mum - Kathryn
Kathryn is a stay at home mum. She has two boys, Kameron who is nearly 4 years old and Lachlan who is 17 months.
Diary of a Mum - Lucy
Lucy is the mother of two children, Olivia, who is 17 months old and Charlie, who is only 8 weeks. Read a day in the life of a mummy to two under two!
Diary of a Mum - Sherie
Sherie is a mum to three children, Lindsay 5, Erin 3 and Paige who is nearly 2. They live on a farm and her days can vary greatly.
Guilty Secrets: When Breastfeeding Doesn't Work Out
Kylie felt horribly guilty that she had not given her baby 'the best' and felt a failure as a mother. Whenever she saw articles promoting breastfeeding in newspapers and magazines, she felt inadequate and defensive. So is breastfeeding really best? ABA Counsellor Lesley McBurney explains why she doesn't think breast is best.
Having Another Baby After Depression
It can be very scary to think about having another baby after experiencing antenatal or postnatal depression. The fear of going through the same experience can make many parents hesitant to get pregnant again or to have another baby.
Helping Him to Help You With A New Baby
After baby is born, we might have a pretty good idea as to what our partner could do to help us, however women are often guilty of expecting our men to 'read our mind'. Here are ten great tips compiled by BellyBelly Psychologist, Daniel Chable, which will hopefully help women to support their partner in a way which will not only help him, but ourselves too. Also included are some great suggestions from some experienced fathers as to what help they have found useful after their baby's birth.
Ideas For Building Your Support Network After Baby
Joining the Mother 'Hood' offers a whole new dimension to the concept of 'networking'. Although it probably won't help you raise any glass ceilings, your mothering network may prevent you from sliding into a downward spiral towards isolation and despair.
Lost Your Waist? Here's How To Find It Again!
One of the most common issues women have after pregnancy is that their waist just isn't as small as it used to be. They just want to get back into their normal, pre-pregnancy clothes and while the rest of their body seems to be getting back to normal, the waist just doesn't seem to be doing the same. For some easy, gentle exercises, read on.
Making Motherhood Look Easy
We all know that being a mother is bloody hard work. It's not about coffee, cake, strolling through shopping centres and giggling with girlfriends while letting the kids loose at playcentres. Or is it?! Check out these hilarious tips compiled by BellyBelly's Forum Moderating Team in order to help mothers out there to make motherhood look easy!
Mastitis & Blocked Ducts - Symptoms and Treatments for Mastitis
Mastitis is a bacterial infection of the breast which usually occurs in breastfeeding mothers. However, mastitis can occur even in women who are not breastfeeding or pregnant, and can even occur in small babies.
Menstruation, Your Period and Ovulation After Baby
Menstruation (or your period) and ovulation after baby happens at a unique time for your own body. From blood loss after birth to your period returning to normal, here's what you might expect from your body post-birth.
Mood Changes After Birth: The Blues or Depression?
There are many myths or common misconceptions about motherhood that can add to the stressors faced by new mothers as well as new fathers. Not being aware of some of these myths and their influence can change the way a new mother approaches her new role, slowing down her adjustment to it. For some women this can be a powerful part of PND. Read more to find out if you could be experiencing a case of the blues or if it's possible you could have PND or something more serious.
Mooncup Menstural Cup - Why The Mooncup Is Better Than Tampons
The Mooncup Menstural Cup is a reusable, silicone cup which collects menstural flow instead of absorbing it. Save money, help the environment and use a great product which forms a light seal to prevent leakage and odour. Read on about this amazing product which doesn't deposit fibres into your vagina like tampons do.
Post Natal Depression
Because parenthood is a constant and demanding job, some womens experiences are not like the media images of two happy parents with a clean, cuddly, well-fed, sleeping baby.
Post Natal Physiotherapy
The pelvic floor muscles are some of the most important muscles a woman has, yet because they are not visible, they are often neglected. Pregnancy and childbirth can weaken these muscles.
Preventing Sore Nipples
The best treatment of sore nipples is prevention. The best prevention is latching the baby on properly from the first day.
Sex After Childbirth - Will It Ever Feel The Same Again?
Are you worried about how your vagina will bounce back after childbirth? Do you wonder if sex will ever feel the same again, for you or your partner? We've interviewed real-life women to find out if they or their partner noticed a difference in sensation after childbirth. Find out who's having the multiple orgasms!
The Emotional Scars of Caesarean Birth
Birth by caesarean can have powerful psychological effects on women and their ability to adjust to motherhood. A woman's experience of her caesarean birth and her perceptions of the event, are influenced by multiple complex factors. Find out what they are in this article based on Australian as well as overseas research.
The First Post-Natal Week And What To Expect
Wondering what to expect from your body and your baby in the first post-natal week? From your milk production to your baby's first bowel motions, this great reference article written by BellyBelly midwife, Alan Rooney, will let you know what changes to expect in the very first week after you've just given birth.
Things You May Lose When You Have a Baby
It may seem like a strange thing to say but there are many things you may lose when you start a new family. What could you possibly lose?
What About Me - and Where Have I Gone?
Somewhere between the third load of laundry for the day and scraping burnt bits from our dinner of fish fingers, I had disappeared without a trace. Gone was a vibrant, confident, sexy woman and in her place was this un-showered, sleep deprived, leaking, sagging mother who cried a lot.
What Does Your House Look Like?
I have often met new parents, mothers in particular, who believe that they should keep a "display house" at the same time as looking after a baby.
When Your Baby's Wellbeing Is Everyone Else's Business...
Do you feel judged and/or incompetent when a complete stranger, or a member of your family, tells you what they think is a better way to do things? How do you deal with it when it seems like your baby's well being is everyone else's business?
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