Forget how your baby is sleeping, how are YOU sleeping?
Insomnia and sleep disruptions are really common for new mums. There's a major drop in your progesterone levels straight after birth, and this remains low until the return of your period. Progesterone eases anxiety, and promotes sleep quality.
Oxytocin "the bonding hormone" floods your system right after birth, and switches on your "motherhood instinct". But with that, often comes feelings of worry about anything and everything, particularly to do with your baby's safety. And of course these feelings often peak overnight.
Our own circadian rhythm also gets used to waking in the night, and sometimes, even once your baby is sleeping through, you might still find yourself wide awake at the times they used to feed.
So here are some things you can do to help with your own sleep quality,
#1. Go for daily walks.
When exposed to sunlight, our bodies release serotonin. A hormone used in the synthesis of melatonin. And melatonin is a naturally occurring hormone that helps us to sleep overnight. Serotonin is also responsible for lifting our mood, and helping to ease anxiety and depression.
#2. Keep lights dim, and avoid blue light screens overnight.
Phones and other devices emit a blue light similar to that of the sun, which signals to the brain that it's time to be awake. So picking up your phone overnight will make it harder for you to fall back to sleep. To keep yourself occupied, try reading from a kindle, or listening to a podcast instead of scrolling your phone. Block any artificial lights in your room too. If you sleep with a video monitor by your bed, keep the screen facing down or the screen off and just keep the sound on.
#3. Don't work, eat, or watch tv in bed.
Just like babies and children, adults also develop sleep associations. You want your bed to represent sleep (or sex) and nothing else. Sometimes it helps to actually get up out of bed for awhile if you've been laying there wide awake for ages. Go get some water, build up a little sleep pressure and then go return to bed when you feel like you're more likely to fall asleep easily again.
#4. Keep a pen and paper beside your bed.
If you find yourself worrying or thinking about your to do list, scribble it down on the piece of paper. That way you'll stop running it over in your head, and you also won't be laying up stressing that you might forget it by the morning.
#5. Count sheep!
You've probably heard this one, but it actually works. But you need to stay focused and think only of the sheep. Picture one sheep at a time jumping over something. And count each one. As soon as you mind starts to wander, bring yourself back to those boring jumping sheep!
#6. Just rest.
If you're really struggling to sleep, tell yourself it's ok that you're not asleep, your body benefits from rest too.
__
I hope these tips help. I know it can be so hard to function and be your best self when you're lacking sleep. And it's important to note, that insomnia can be a symptom (and or a catalyst) of postpartum depression. Studies show that mothers who sleep poorly are more than three times as likely to experience depression than those with good sleep quality. So if you are struggling with sleep and you feel like it might be impacting other parts of your life, make sure to reach out for help. A good place to start is chatting with your GP. For more info on mental health support, visit www.panda.org.au
And if your little one is also struggling with sleep, check out our Sleep Support packages as we'd love to help you get sleep on track for the whole family.
