Life is filled with stressors, from jobs (or lack of) and relationship issues to missing project deadlines, missing your period, and finding you have a positive pregnancy test. Even if being pregnant is exciting for you, feeling stressed during pregnancy is common, according to the March of Dimes.

Some stress in our lives is okay; we face and learn from challenges and meet deadlines. However, not dealing with stress properly can, and does, impact our physical health, including impacting blood pressure.

Stress During Pregnancy

During pregnancy, a woman may have physical changes (dealing with nausea, constipation, and being tired) and emotional struggles (worrying about and planning for a new baby). Additionally, hormones are changing, which impacts a woman’s mood, and juggling various responsibilities, such as work and family, affects stress.

If the pregnancy is unplanned, that, too, adds to a woman’s stress level.

Not keeping stress in check may affect not only your health, but also the health of your unborn. Stress may contribute to low birth weight and premature birth.

Learn more about stress and pregnancy here: http://www.marchofdimes.org/pregnancy/stress-and-pregnancy.aspx#.

Handling Stress

There are several ways to deal with the stressors in life and during pregnancy:

  1. Recognize the discomforts of pregnancy, such as backaches and nausea, are temporary. Talk with your health care provider how to handle these.
  2. Stay healthy. Eat good foods, get plenty of sleep, and exercise (with your doctor’s okay).
  3. Cut back on activities that you don’t need to do. Managing life sometimes means saying “no” to certain things.
  4. Have a strong support system, people with whom you can talk. At True Care, we offer a program to our patients called Baby & Me, through which first time moms not only learn good parenting skills, but also have a confidant to talk with.

Stress Awareness Month

April is National Stress Awareness Month. All of us, pregnant or not, deal with stressors in life, from challenges at work, at home, to health or financial issues. How we cope with those problems determines the course of our life, and our physical and emotional health. Find more information on stress, including stress-relieving foods and ways to de-stress, here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/04/16/stress-tips_n_7011542.html.

Find a free ebook on stress relief here.

Unplanned Pregnancy Causing You Stress?

If you or someone you know is facing the stress of an unplanned pregnancy, let True Care in Casper, Wyoming help. Schedule an appointment for a free pregnancy test and education on all pregnancy options by calling 307-215-9684. Our medical professionals can answer your questions about pregnancy, stress, and options, and our Early KinCare Resource Coordinator can relieve some of the anxiety you may experience during pregnancy by offering many resources, including quit smoking programs and signing up for insurance.

Let us be part of your positive support system. Call for your pregnancy test appointment today: 307-215-9684.