Stolen Moment Recovery

Babies experience a growth spurt during the fifth week of life that is exhausting for their mothers. The rapid growth makes babies nervous and they will cry loudly and constantly if put down, left in the cot or even when put to bed after bring rocked to sleep. This is when mother’s recovery becomes a covert operation, a time when you have to steal moments for yourself. Here’s what you can do with those stolen moments…
10. With ten free minutes, eat a hot meal with both hands. Even if your baby is only a few weeks old, it probably feels like you’ve been bolting down cold meals as quickly as possible for most of your life. Cutting bite-sized pieces and chewing slowly are stomach-friendly and at least one hot meal a day reduces stress levels.

9. With nine free minutes take a sitz bad with Epsom salts. Don’t lie down in the tub, but sit in some nice warm water to soothe your nether regions.

8. With eight free minutes trim and moisturize your finger and toe nails. Even if you were meticulous about manicures and pedicures while pregnant, the growth (and breakage) of nails can just creep up on you while you’re so busy.

7. With seven free minutes lie down and listen to two of your favourite songs. If you you’re your baby lullabies to soothe, try to recreate the same calm to do some pre-emptive soothing of yourself.

6. With six free minutes, lie down on the floor on your back and gently exercise your abdominal muscles and lower back. This is not the time to try full sit ups! Just try to gently draw your belly button toward your spine. Gently repeat drawing in your muscles as you breathe in and out very slowly.

5. With five free minutes, lie on the floor on your stomach. Keeping your shoulders and hips relaxed, gently pull your abdominal muscles toward your spine. Tense and relax as you breathe in and out.

4. With four free minutes, drink a cup of “women’s” herbal tea containing the herb Melissa. It is believed that this herb helps the uterine muscles contract.

3. With three free minutes, eat a snack containing dairy protein such as a piece of cheese on a cracker or a few spoonfuls of yogurt. Not only do you need to replenish your calcium stores, but the protein will break down slowly and hold off hunger longer than a starchier snack.

2. With two free minutes rub a little calendula cream or other nappy change cream into your own hands. Newborns require constant nappy changes and constant nappy changes require constant hand washing. Combine that extra exposure to soap and water with rinsing out soiled garments by hand, and the skin of a new mother’s hands can even crack and bleed. The same waterproofing protection the cream brings to your baby’s bottom can also help your own hands.

1. With one free minute get a glass of water and drink it down. Dehydration is a constant battle during the immediate postnatal period and it can lead to serious problems ranging from greater stress, to poor milk supply, to headaches and fainting.