The time after giving birth is the most critical part of a mother’s physical recovery. This is critical period is known as the fourth trimester. During this time, a mother’s body goes through a lot of changes, and the new task of taking care of a newborn adds to the physical toll on her body.
This results in discomfort, typically in the form of various body aches and pains: migraines, shoulder and back pain, neck pain, and knee pain. These things aren’t isolated to first-time mothers. The majority of women who give birth suffer from one or all of these forms of discomfort after each birth. When left unattended, this can lead to chronic pain and even injuries.
To prevent this from happening, here are some helpful ways to restore a new mother’s physical health postpartum.
Visit a Chiropractor
Over-the-counter pain relievers can provide temporary relief from body aches and pains. However, taking pain relievers isn’t an option for everyone, especially for moms who have an allergic reaction to some components found in pain relievers.
Fortunately, it’s possible to achieve long-lasting back pain relief by undergoing chiropractic treatment. It’s a safer alternative for those with medicine allergies and nursing mothers. Aside from relieving back pains, chiropractic treatment can provide lasting relief from shoulder, neck, and knee pain. It can help reduce the occurrence of migraines and headaches.
The full-body alignment, particularly the neck and spinal column ones, has been proven effective in releasing muscle tension. This results in a higher overall physical wellness. The treatment helps in eliminating constant debilitating pain from occurring and allows new mothers to move with much ease and strength.
Practice Postnatal Yoga
Yoga is known to improve flexibility and muscle strength. The same can be said for postnatal yoga. However, before spreading your mat and following a yogi or a yogini, you must first get in touch with your doctor to get clearance to start with this routine. Different bodies have different recovery periods. Your body needs to be fully healed before starting with postnatal yoga to ensure your safety and make the most out of the activity.
Postnatal yoga is a modified low-intensity yoga that helps provide physical healing and mental calmness after giving birth. It focuses on poses that support recovery and restoration of the mind and body. It also aids in alleviating the stress that comes with the new or additional role of being a mother.
When one’s emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual states are balanced, they aid in improving your mood and increasing your energy. They provide new moms with reconnecting with their bodies. In addition, being in the right condition allows them to move in ways that can relieve pain and make them feel in control of their body.
Postnatal yoga helps restore physical strength as the core muscles are strengthened and conditioned. Regaining strength and flexibility makes it much easier to move about and reduces muscle and body pains.
If you are still waiting for clearance from your doctor to do yoga, you can do pelvic floor exercises in the meantime. These workouts are extremely helpful in the recovery of the pelvic floor.
Get Sufficient Rest
Rest when you need to, and don’t feel guilty about it. Your physical well-being can affect your ability to do the responsibilities of a mother. It’s difficult to go on with your day without taking care of yourself and resting when you’re tired.
Your body nurtured a life inside it for nine months. Your body will go through more changes after giving birth. The exhaustion that you’ll feel is natural and valid, so getting the right amount of rest is crucial in your physical recovery. When you feel better physically, it improves your mental, emotional, and spiritual state.
Resting allows your muscles to recover and gives you physical strength to carry on each day. You can get enough energy to take care of yourself and another tiny human being (and your other children if you have more).
As you would like to do your best for your newborn child, you should do the same for yourself as a new mother. You can master the style that works for you and your newborn, and you will need the strength to do so. With that said, take the necessary steps to ensure that you also focus on your own recovery. Making the process difficult for a mother, new or otherwise, should be avoided so that they can fully enjoy the merits of being a parent.
