Pregnancy Week 9 – Your Support System
It is important to establish a good support system through family, friends and Mom’s groups. Check out some support meetings for expectant Mom’s. Places online like iVillage and BabyCenter are great resources. We’re building a network here as well. Check meetup.com and see if there are any local moms looking to find others going through this same life-changing event.
The development of a strong support system can help you get through the rough patches of pregnancy as it can be a time of stress, fatigue and anxiety as well as great joy.
It is a time of tremendous change, psychologically and physically. Women need support, both emotionally and physically, through this important life-changing event.
The first place you will turn for help during pregnancy will be your spouse, then your family and your friends.
These are the people who are in your life on a consistent basis, so it is natural that you would seek their support first. You want to be selective with your support system. If there is a person or persons in your life who are being negative, you will want to limit your exposure to them. Surround yourself with the people in your life who are supportive and helpful. It is important to avoid emotional conflict and stress where you can because you will have enough of that on your own.
Other places to build a strong support network are prenatal groups and childbirth classes.
They can help you connect with others who are experiencing some of the same issues as you are right now. Your primary care provider, childbirth educator or hospital social worker can place you in contact with support systems in your area. Many times the friendships formed through these groups can continue long after the pregnancy and birth, and sometimes can be a support system for life.
I’d established early on in my pregnancy that I didn’t want to hear the ‘bad’ stories. I threatened to wear a No Negativity button just to keep people from sharing. What is it with us? We have to share all the pain and details of what wasn’t up to our expectation for that first pregnancy? Umm, hello??? Not all births are painful. Nor do they need to be. Industrialized nations are the ONLY ones who consider birth to be painful and pregnancy to be something other than the purely wonderful action it is. More natural regions, women have babies in fields and go right back to working….NO PAIN. I swear, it’s the media’s fault.
I surrounded myself with positive people.
I warned those who started down the path of a bad story to keep it to themselves. I and the baby could hear them. If I found myself obsessing over something too negative, I leaned into meditating or searching out positive stories.
Make sure others are aware of you’re no negativity zone. Friends and family may have great stories to share, but cut them off if they start to make you nervous. Remind them, good stories only! They’re supposed to be there to support you.
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Hmmmm, very interesting. I’d never considered that before!