1. You’ll never get your body back?

LIES, LIES and more LIES. Don’t ever listen to anyone who says ‘you’ll never get back to the shape you were once in’. This is one of the most misleading myths out there. Yes, of course it takes time and effort for your body to go back to the way it was. But it will get there. Most women are deconditioned during pregnancy because they can’t to the same standard of activity that they might be use too. Or even simple daily tasks came become quite difficult especially closer to the due date. Plus the fact that your body has been through a lot of trauma with pregnancy, from changes in posture, muscle imbalances and direct trauma from child birth. Of course this takes work to get back from, especially when you have a new-born baby thrown into the mix. What I’m trying to say is that, yes it’s hard to get body back straight after having a baby but it is 100% achievable, it just takes patient and hard work. Give yourself a break, your body has been through so many changes over the past 9 months. If someone had an injury you would expect them to take a while to recovery and to do the right rehab to get back to pre-injury performance. Well it’s the same thing with pregnancy, you’re body has been through hell and back. You’re pelvic floor and abdominals are probably very tired and weak. It’s all about not overloading the body too soon and causing more damage. If you practice the correct techniques and exercises, you can be better and stronger than you ever were before.

2. C-Section means that no damage has been done to my Pelvic Floor?

This is definitely a myth pelvic floor recovery considerations are often needed just due to the postural changes and weight of the baby. Pregnancy put a lot of stress and demand down on to the pelvic floor. Which may leave it weak and overworked. That’s why a lot of mothers suffer from leaking even though that may have had a C-section. It needs time to heal. The pelvic floor shuts down without motion. Simply going on frequent short walks and knowing the right exercises can really help with overall recovery.

3. Bed rest is good after pregnancy?

Bed rest may be necessary in severe cases but majority of the time, women post pregnancy are in bed may too long. According to studies 14 days of bedrest showed muscle wasting in the multifidi (back muscle) and an increase in psoas activity. The multifidi returned to baseline activation in a week but it took a month for the psoas to return (Hides, 2007). This show’s us that bedrest can leave us more vulnerable. Which means when we do decide to leave the bed, we may have to overload other muscles to compensate. We can help prevent that from happening by encouraging moms to move sooner, which is most likely to reduce back pain.

Another problem I see women face after bed-rest, is that because you feel when like you have done nothing in so long, you end up doing too much too soon. Which can set you back and might discourage you further.

4. You should feel an instant connection with your child?

I’ll just say this once, post-natal depression is a thing. According to the Health Service Executive (2010), post-natal depression affects roughly over 15% of mothers in Ireland and that only the documented figure. Society can put a lot of pressure on women as to what they should feel like after pregnancy but the truth is every experience is different and unique to that person. Nobody should be catheterised. There is help out there for women and we should be encouraged more to take it.

Giving birth can be a highly emotional and physically traumatic experience and the sudden drop in hormone levels following birth can leave you emotionally and physically drained. You may feel weepy, hyper-sensitive, anxious and alone in the world. About 80% of women feel like this and will experience “the baby blues” at some point following the birth of their baby. These feelings will usually pass, with some rest and physical and moral support from your partner, family and friends. But in some cases in can develop into postnatal depression.

It may affect up to 1 in 6 new mothers, although some experts believe it affects more than this. Symptoms may start as baby blues and then get worse, or they may take some time to develop. Symptoms may include irritability, sleep problems, tiredness, anxiety, panic attacks, and obsessive behaviour. It may be most obvious when your baby is 4 – 6 months old.

• Roughly 15% of new mothers in Ireland experience postnatal depression.
• The sooner it is recognised, diagnosed and treated, the faster you will recover.
• Postnatal depression can last for longer than three months and even years if not treated.
• Often a friend or family member will notice that there is something wrong before you do.

If you think you or a loved one is suffering from postnatal depression encourage them to:

• Talk to her GP (public health nurse or counsellor).
• Express her true feelings.
• Join a support group.
• Find out more about postnatal depression.