Yoga

Post natal depression is far more common than most of us realize. Many women suffer this condition soon after childbirth and many of these women feel they have no place to turn or no one to talk to about it. Having a baby is one of life’s greatest gifts but this gift often and nearly always has a price.

Post natal depression affects many new mothers and yoga is a wonderful and gentle way to combat this situation. The nutrients taken from the body and the many changes that occur for new mums are great. Breast feeding is a magical way to bond with your new baby but also a situation that can take and not replenish many of the necessary vitamins and minerals needed to keep a new mum healthy and happy.

Attending a yoga class when you baby is new born is a very helpful way to begin to move the body and to connect with other new mums. These yoga classes often are slow moving and many of them allow your new baby to attend the class with you. This is great as the mothers can bond over their shared experiences and feel a sense of belonging and connectedness that they may not be feeling with their regular friends. A gap can open between new mums and their friends that don’t have babies. This is ok but needs to be addressed and acknowledged if these friendships are to continue.

Yoga for new mums is really a wonderful way to reawaken the body and start to align the systems, spine and internal organs that have been pushed around during the process of pregnancy and childbirth. These processes can leave a mama with a sense of depression as the body is not sitting as it is used to. This unalignment of the body can be the basis and beginning of post natal depression and gently alleviating this through the practice of yoga can be a saving grace. This should be a gentle process as it has taken 9 months to make and deliver this baby. There should be no rush to attain a state of physical fitness and awareness that was apparent before this whole process.

In fact, the slower the new mum takes it during the first 3 months, the better I believe. Ahimsa, the universal law of non-violence shows us that being kind to oneself, the mother, is ultimately being kind and sensitive to your new baby. Rushing back to an exercise routine is not the way to go I feel. Taking it easy and relishing in the role of new mum and the realization that life has changed will ultimately make the first few months easier on mum and baby. We don’t need to push to get back to where we were before this whole process, kindness to oneself and a level of acceptance can help a mum move through these feelings and not allow them to take hold.

Awakening the awareness of the breath is a wonderful place to start at these classes. Many of them begin with the slow and steady notion of the breath to move the body. Bringing back a sense of awareness and being present in the body also can be a big help for new mums. A lot has changed in life and the body and allowing this to be ok and not fighting it can facilitate the whole process for the new mum. Sometimes post natal depression can begin from the fight of the surrender necessary for the new mum and baby to bond.

Life will never be the same again after the birth of your child. It may work its way back to a semblance of what it once was but never the same. It took me many long and hard months to accept this. I was always thinking “soon it will be back to how it was, just abit longer and I will be there”. But I never was going to get there. My life had changed forever and once I realized this and accepted it everything fell into place.

Post natal depression is not something to be ashamed of. It is a situation that can affect new mothers dramatically. Yoga can help to control this just as dramatically. Moving the body even a little bit can have wonderous affects on the spirit and soul. We don’t need to be superwoman at this stage. A little breathing practice and opening and stretching the body can lead a woman in the right direction and provide a lightness of spirit.

New motherhood is a beautiful and delightful time of life. Let it unfold at its own pace, don’t force it. Babies are sublime and they know what to do. Work with them and go with their flow. If there is one thing yoga can bring a new mum it is an acceptance of her new body and where she is in life. Yoga is wonderful, it is a window into the soul, just like a baby is. Enjoy.