Maternity leave is a period in life that is filled with both immense joy and overwhelming challenges. The early days that you get to have with a newborn baby are very special, but they’re also exhausting.
Your body goes through an awful lot during pregnancy and then goes through even more during labour, being pushed to the limits to help a human being be born into the world. The next thing you have to look forward to is a few months off of work, to bond with your baby and take time to rest.
Unfortunately, maternity leave isn’t always as restful as the books would like you to think. Remember, your entire life has just changed because now you are a parent and you are responsible for another life. You’re going to go home from the hospital exhausted after birth and then be expected to stay exhausted while you try to raise a newborn baby. None of that is easy, so you need to be able to find a balance between caring for your little one, and preserving your own well being.
We’ve put together a list of tips to help you to make the most of your maternity leave to ensure that you both come out the other side of it in one piece.
Carve out daily time just for you.
It’s actually really important that even though you are on leave that determines that you are now a mother, that you make sure that you remember that you were a human being first. When you’re a mother, you’re expected to give all of yourself over to your babies, as you should. But you can lose yourself a little bit along the way. It’s OK to take a break from being a parent for 5 minutes, which means if you need to step away just to breathe or to read a book or to play a game of spades on the Internet like you used to, you can still do that. Balance is so key for getting through postpartum periods without any postpartum depression. A little bit of self care, and by that we don’t mean the shower, can go a long way.
Take good care of your body.
It took nine months to completely change your body, which means you’re going to need to not beat yourself up in those first two or three weeks after you’ve had a baby, where everything starts to shuffle back into place. You have to honour your body during this., and while you may be focused on the baby and your feeding times, you need to give yourself time to heal. Hydrate, nourish yourself with the right food, and try to rest as much as your body and your baby will allow you to. It’s not just about sleeping, but taking moments to stretch or relax your own muscles after a feed or baby wearing. You’re going to be so focused on caring for your newborn that it will be very easy to forget you. But you do matter.
Reach out for support.
There are no medals in getting through those first early weeks of maternity leave without asking for help. There is not going to be a trophy because you didn’t complain and there is not going to be fanfare because you dealt with everything alone or with your partner. Motherhood can be very isolating, so when family members are reaching out to chat to you or to offer some help, if you feel you need it, take it. It takes a village to raise a baby, so you have to use these months on maternity leave to build yours.
Put yourself into a routine.
You can’t put a baby into a routine, because all they’ve never known is you inside the womb. One of the first things that you’re going to notice about life with a newborn is that your schedule will be all over the place. You can’t stick to a sleep routine with a baby but you can feed them on demand, while making sure that you set alarms to remind yourself to eat and drink. Putting yourself into a routine for your food keeps you nourished and that keeps you able to feed your baby. Even something as simple as putting at least one walk a day into your routine can make all the difference to your mental and physical well being.
Remain active.
After those early weeks have passed and your doctor has given you the go ahead, get active. Bundle the baby into the rapport into their stroller and go out for a walk or for a jog even. There are certain strollers out there that allow you to jog, but you can also take yourself to the gym and put the baby in the crash or you can take yourself to a friend or family member. There are always tons of baby groups that you could also go to and take your newborn too so that they can become a part of a community nice and early. Not only will this help you to recover, but it gives you the opportunity to focus on yourself a little more.
Have fun with your baby.
As you move through the months of maternity leave, it’s OK to get on the floor and play with your baby as much as possible. The older and the more aware they become, the more fun time with them will be. Newborns tend to do not much more than eat or sleep, but once they start to crawl, or they start being weaned onto solid food around six months, the fun really does begin.
Indulge in some hobbies.
Even if your hobby is baking or reading or playing games online it’s OK to take some time out during nap time for you to be able to indulge in yourself a little while. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, give yourself permission to take a break from the baby duties and focus on something that brings you a little more joy. Online card games are perfect for example because even if you’re in the middle of breastfeeding, you can play games on your phone.
Celebrate yourself along the way.
Motherhood is packed with small victories and it’s important to celebrate them and recognise them. If your baby allows you some sleep for an extra hour last night, that’s a win! If you took a shower and managed to wash and dry your hair while not waking the baby, that’s also a win! Each day will bring you something new to enjoy about being a mum, so find joy in those little moments and keep yourself motivated and grounded.
Make some new friends.
Maternity leave is a time for you to make new friends with other mothers. You’ll still have all of your friends from your pre-baby days and you’ll still be able to engage with your family, but taking yourself and your baby to a play group or a baby class gives you a chance to make friends with people that have babies the same age. You can weather the same baby storms together, and it can be a welcome break to find people who think like you and who are in the same stages of life as you are.
Bond with your partner.
Assuming that the partner or the person who helped you parent your child is in the picture with you during this time, snatch times together to bond and remind each other of how much you love one another. You may be on maternity leave, but you don’t have to go it alone entirely. They are also apparent and you are all learning together how to conquer this little life that you’ve created. You’ll both be learning how to do diapers and how to count breastfeeds or even bottles if that’s the way you’ve chosen to go. You’re both in a new stage of life and it’s going to take some navigating to find your way again, but it’s so worth it by the time you finish maternity leave and go into the next phase of parenthood.
