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WOMEN'S & CHILDREN'S | Family Maternity Center | Pregnancy Resource Center | Pregnancy Library | Emotions | Don’t let stress drag you down
Don’t let stress drag you down
Stress is the bane of many working women's lives. Even if you enjoy your work, have a supportive family and are enjoying a trouble-free pregnancy, the sheer number of things you may be expected to do in a day can make low-level stress a constant companion.
For some women, pregnancy brings added stress in the form of relationship difficulties, health concerns, or uncertainties about the future of their career.
Not all stress is bad; healthy stress helps us gather our energy to meet the challenges of life. But too much stress is unhealthy, particularly during pregnancy.
Stress-busting tips
- Ask for help. Up until now, it may have been easier to do it all yourself. Pregnancy is a good time to practice asking your partner or your friends for some help with chores or errands.
- Hire some help. Can you afford to pay a housekeeper for a few months? Get more take-out meals? Hire your neighbor's son, or even a professional landscaper, to keep the yard and garden in control this season?
- Let it go. Maybe you don't need to cook a gourmet meal every night, or sew your own clothes, or have a spotless house. When you make your day's to-do list, examine it carefully and prioritize what really must be done ahead of those things that are nice but not truly necessary.
- Exercise. It's one of the best natural stress-reducers, and it's easier to deal with the physical and emotional challenges of pregnancy when you're fit. Put this at the top of your to-do list.
- Sleep. Adequate sleep will help you better weather the stresses of daily life.
- Reconsider your commute. Rather than driving, can you take the train or bus, and enjoy a good book along the way? If you must drive, try leaving a little earlier and taking a more restful route, or take calming music to listen to on the tape or CD player (Take caution not to play music that makes you drowsy or puts you to sleep).
- Don't skimp on meals. You need plenty of fuel and water to stay healthy mentally as well as physically.
- Take a break. Schedule in time for a talk with a friend, a stroll (as opposed to a fitness walk) with your partner, a bath by candlelight, or a lazy afternoon alone with a book.
- Consciously relax. Consider meditation or prayer, guided visualization, yoga, self-hypnosis, or other stress-reduction techniques. You may need to seek out a class or a professional for help getting started.
When stress is serious
Talk with your doctor if you:
- Don't feel safe in your own home. No one deserves to be verbally or physically abused, and abuse crosses all social and economic lines. There are many resources available to help women in these circumstances.
- Find yourself turning to alcohol, cigarettes, or drugs for relief.
- Find yourself taking out your stress on your children, or worried that you may do so.
- Are preoccupied with concerns about your health or that of your baby.
- Are having trouble simply coping with daily life.
Date last reviewed: October 2002.
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