For a lot of women, the biggest joy of life arrives when they find out they are pregnant. That two people in love start prepping to welcome a bundle of joy is the stuff made of dreams.
But for a few, a confirmation of pregnancy often gives way to jitters. What makes the situation even more stressful is when one sees other pregnant women enjoying their journey. While one may be wondering why it is only them who is gripped with this debilitating condition, it is fairly common a phenomenon. Perinatal anxiety or anxiety during pregnancy is experienced by more than 1 in 10 pregnant women at some point in their journeys. For them, the path is often marred by a constant, worrisome state. Many first time moms who might have been carefree until their pregnancies suddenly find themselves enveloped by frightening anxiety.
A study has found that women who fear childbirth constantly and are stressed about labour pain, may have longer labour as compared to those who are not as fearful. Issues like fearing about the impending delivery, experiencing symptoms like nausea, debilitating aches or even other conditions like preeclampsia (which is usually seen after 20 weeks of pregnancy leading to high blood pressure and fluid retention resulting in serious complications) or gestational diabetes (developing diabetes during pregnancy even if there was none before), often trigger anxiety which becomes difficult to manage in some cases.
To make matters gloomier, there are a handful who understand the anxiety experienced by such individuals. Most tend to laugh it off or become judgemental. So such individuals keep their fears and stress simmering inside and that manifest as anxiety during pregnancy. Remaining in a constant state of worry, restlessness, increased heartbeat, difficulty in breathing, irritability, sleep disorders and even panic attacks are few of the physical symptoms of anxiety which can impact day-to-day activities, appetite, relationships and work life of such individuals.
Once a state of anxiety develops and is not managed well, it might even lead to other disorders like obsessive-compulsive disorder (having unreasonable thoughts and fears which manifest as repeated and compulsive behaviour) and post-traumatic stress disorder (remaining stressed even after the event which caused it, has been over).
While there may be numerous outcomes of developing anxiety during pregnancy, there is some good news; the situation can actually be effectively managed with mindfulness techniques.
Mindfulness is the act of making your mind focus to the present and being completely aware of your body and surroundings. Mindfulness is achieved by being aware of your own breathing, completely focussing on one thing at a time and learning to give up multi-tasking and refraining from wavering of mind.
Soulveda here delves deep into the mindfulness techniques that help people cope with anxiety while ushering the birth of a baby in their lives.
Mindful breathing curbs anxiety
One of the foremost things you can do is pay attention to your breathing and practicing deep inhalation and exhalation; this is a magnificent way to experience relaxation. Without being conscious of our breathing, we engage in shallow breathing. During pregnancy, when we start focusing on our breathing, it immediately makes us aware of the gushing in of air, which in turn, makes us focused on the present. It has a calming effect bringing us back to the current moment. Doing mindful breathing is an excellent way to stop anxiety from increasing. During labour, deep breathing exercises particularly help in the pain and facilitate natural or normal birthing.
According to The Harvard Gazette, “Mindfulness teaches you the skill of paying attention to the present by noticing when your mind wanders off. Come back to your breath. It is a place where we can rest and settle our minds.”
Meditation strengthens the core
Research has found that practicing mindfulness meditation during pregnancy can help manage perinatal anxiety and even reduce the fear of labor. Mindfulness as a practice allows life to unfold without going back and forth to the past or the future while meditation helps us practice being in the present and attuning our mind to it. With regular practice, we may let our mind wander sometimes but can remain focused on the present bodily sensations and surroundings in a more steadfast manner.
For a pregnant woman who is grappling with anxiety, meditation helps her by teaching her to be mindful of her thoughts and not pushing them aside. No matter how disturbing, these thoughts are first accepted and then allowed to fade away. Doing so helps her feel more positive by being aware and accepting of the present.
Just try and imagine worrying about everything like ‘how will I cope with the labour pains’ or ‘how will I manage my baby alone’ and then replacing that with being aware of the present sensation of you and the growing life inside. Mindfulness meditation with sustained practice can bring you to a beautiful state of remaining connected with the baby while facing each day as it comes.
Guided visualisation makes you aware yet calm
Hypnotherapist Marie Mongan came up with the idea of hypnobirthing and wrote a book ‘HypnoBirthing: A Celebration of Life’ where she addresses the anxiety and fear faced by many women. At the core is the idea that when the body and mind are in a completely relaxed state, birth can happen quickly and painlessly, as the body lets the natural progression take place.
Practices like controlled breathing, focusing on positive words and thoughts, and guided visualisation helps the body remain in a relaxed state rather than in a flight-or-fight mode.
Guided visualisation in simple terms is like imagining the body opening up like a flower. Here, you remain fully aware of the process, mindfully participate in it and with the assistance of relaxing music and a trained birthing assistant, undergo the process calmly.
Even if the experience does not go as you planned or imagined it to be, regular breathing exercises, listening to calming music and making that effort to maintain a calmer state of mind will help manage this journey better along with the post-partum period when the baby arrives.
One thing is certain, that the new bundle of joy will bring with it new demands of feeding, changed sleep patterns and unforeseen challenges. With mindfulness, you will be prepared to embrace any kind of anxiety with calm and confidence.
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