{"id":117761,"date":"2020-01-02T11:00:38","date_gmt":"2020-01-02T11:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/?p=117761"},"modified":"2023-03-10T17:48:35","modified_gmt":"2023-03-10T17:48:35","slug":"stress-in-pregnancy-care-info","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.harleytherapy.co.uk\/counselling\/stress-in-pregnancy-care-info.htm","title":{"rendered":"Stress In Pregnancy – How Serious Is It, and What Can Be Done?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"stress<\/a>

By: Jeena Paradies<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

What does recent research have to say about the health effects of<\/strong> stress in pregnancy<\/a> on mother and baby? And how can you work to lessen stress<\/a> for yourself? Writer Anna Frier<\/span> explores. <\/span><\/p>\n

How serious is stress in pregnancy?<\/h3>\n

In severe cases where<\/strong> stress leads to anxiety<\/a> or depression<\/a> there can be adverse outcomes such as premature birth or low birth weights.(1)<\/span><\/p>\n

Longer-term, anxiety<\/a> or other extreme stress<\/a> during pregnancy, can have a lasting impact on <\/strong>children\u2019s neural development<\/a> (2).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Even lower levels of stress exposure during pregnancy can have negative effects.<\/strong> Pregnancy usually suppresses the natural immune response in the body and the brain. But when pregnant rats in a recent study by Ohio State University<\/a> were put under stress, it triggered an immune response that led to changes in brain function known to be connected to depression<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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More research is needed to figure out how these biochemical processes work in humans, but the consensus is that chronic mental stress raises the risk of post natal depression (PND)<\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Four steps to dealing\u00a0 with stress in pregnancy<\/span><\/h3>\n

Fortunately, there are several methods and tools you can use to reduce your stress levels during pregnancy.\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

<\/b>1. Understand what your stress factors are<\/span><\/h4>\n

Take time to map out your stress factors on paper<\/strong>. This means all the things that lately have triggered overwhelming emotions<\/a> or set off obsessive negative thinking<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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  1. Try to be as specific as possible. Don\u2019t<\/strong> write “my job”, but note the precise things that cause you stress, whether it\u2019s a certain annoying colleague<\/a>, a tedious job procedure, or concerns about an overdue promotion<\/a>, etc.<\/span><\/li>\n
  2. Depending on how far you are into your pregnancy, think about what things stress you that didn\u2019t before you were pregnant<\/strong>. Women during pregnancy are more emotionally sensitive<\/a>, which means the threshold for triggering stress will be somewhat lower. <\/span><\/li>\n
  3. Don’t forget to honestly examine all major<\/strong> relationships with family<\/a> and friends<\/a>.<\/span><\/li>\n
  4. Once your list is done, try ranking the stress factors by the intensity of their effect<\/strong> on your emotional wellbeing<\/a>. It\u2019s not always easy to quantitatively compare causes of stress but follow your intuition here. <\/span><\/li>\n
  5. Next, review the ranked list and for each stress item take a note of whether it can be avoided or resolved<\/strong> somehow.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/b><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    2. Avoid stress where you can.<\/span><\/h4>\n
    \"stress<\/a>

    By: Corina Sanchez<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

    Getting a bunch of small stress factors out of your life <\/a>will add up to a positive cumulative effect, giving you more time to enjoy your pregnancy.<\/span><\/p>\n

    While avoidance isn’t always a healthy tactic in life, <\/strong>pregnancy is not the time to try to sort out long-held issues, but to take a needed pause.<\/p>\n

    Things to consider ‘putting on pause’ can include:\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n