Self-Care Tips for First-Time Mothers

To all you first-time Mothers trying to figure out how to hold your head above water and maintain a sense of direction in such an overwhelming space:

You have spent months preparing, read every book, taken classes, and still coming home with your newborn can feel so overwhelming and confusing. Your emotions split from an immense overwhelming joy and love you have never felt before with an innate instinct of worry to take care of your little one.

I want you to know you are not alone, many mothers have felt this same way and have struggled with how to balance themselves with the needs of their newborn and infant child as well as how to find balance with their partner.

I want you to know you are doing an amazing job, You are doing the best you can, and trust you know what to do. Let go of the small worries about: “did I miss my baby’s cues for eating, or what if I drop them when I am giving them a bath, or did I burp them enough, or are they getting enough calories or sleep, etc.” These are all important but don’t overwhelm yourself in this process.

The more you feel at peace and taken care of, your infant will respond to this and feel calmer and feel safe in their new environment. Your infant can sense your energy, the more at peace you can be, the more this will help your newborn adjust. 

Tips for taking care of yourself with a newborn/infant:

1) Take time for yourself (nap when they nap, delegate, as hard as it is, other tasks to your partner or support system, leave the house for an hour without your newborn, and do something that brings you joy). Get a manicure, go shopping, go to the beach, or hiking, see a friend for coffee. Do something to help you feel connected to yourself as an adult and reconnect you to your own identity. Journal for 5 minutes every few days, take a shower/bath, wake up before you infant to enjoy your time with yourself.  

2) Utilize bonding time as a way to re-center and connect with yourself and your newborn/infant (hold them and visualize while you breathe deeply the two of you wrapped in a blanket of white healing light and love, close your eyes and connect heart to heart with your baby). This will create a space of security for both you and your little one. 

3) Trust your instincts and intuitive guidance whether being maternal comes naturally to you or not. We all have our intuition. Use this and lean into it for your guidance (if you sense your infant needs to be rocked rather than swung, or snuggled instead of on their own, or is overly stimulated use this. By following this tip (and the one above), this will also allow you to hone in on this connection even deeper. Don’t doubt your intuition, trust if your newborn/infant is crying they will be ok it’s merely their way of speaking to you. Release your anxiety to fix it immediately this can often lead to overthinking. Take deep breaths open your heart center, create a peaceful space to hear clearly within, and connect with your infant and their needs. 

4) Take a break! If you are feeling overwhelmed, delegate to your support system. If there is no one there at the time, allow yourself 3-4 minutes to breathe (go to another room, scream in a pillow, cry, breathe deep, and recenter yourself. Your little one will thank you and you will thank you for this. It all stems back to energy, clearing your energy to a calm, loving space will help you both.  

5) Honor your time with your partner. Create time each day to connect even if it’s 5 minutes in the morning (hold space for each other in this transition). Spend quality one on one time with them either 1x/wk or 1 every 2/wk. This is so important to reconnect to your partner and have well-needed adult time. Schedule it on a calendar, make it a priority. 

6) Connect with other moms, through a social support group. 

Know you are doing an incredible job, You are not alone, and always reach out for support when you need it! You got this, trust yourself! I believe in you, you are an amazing mother!