Women’s our bodies endure many modifications whereas anticipating, typically leading to physique dissatisfaction and dysmorphia. Lounge tells you settle for your post-partum physique.
Khushbu Patel, 31, a Mumbai-based college instructor, can nonetheless keep in mind the primary thought that crossed her thoughts when she realised she was pregnant: that she was going to placed on weight. “I immediately started texting my friends and asking for contacts of dieticians, diet plans, tips and tricks to ensure that I don’t gain too much weight,” she shares. Patel, who confronted just a few problems throughout the course of her being pregnant, says that she was obsessed together with her weight all by means of it. So anxious was she concerning the weight that she started exercising virtually instantly after supply to make sure that she went again to her pre-pregnancy weight. “I didn’t want to look extremely fat, and I didn’t want my family members to think I am fat either,” she says.
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While definitely, it’s good to concentrate on your weight, obsessing over it for well being causes, particularly when coping with a life-altering change like being pregnant, is just not good in your physique or thoughts. A whole lot of ladies are conscious that in any regular wholesome being pregnant, there will probably be some quantity of weight acquire and that gaining about 10 to 14 kilos is regular. she provides. Culture might additionally play a task in post-pregnancy weight acquire and a mom’s acceptance of it. Dr Swathi Reddy (PT), a advisor physiotherapist and licensed weight loss plan counsellor at Motherhood Hospitals, Bengaluru, says that households can markedly affect a girl’s being pregnant and childbirth experiences and will form her mothering behaviour and even her bodily look. “Many families believe that feeding the mother double her usual diet will eventually feed her baby inside the womb,” she says, adding that it could mean that an expecting mother may end up overeating milk, rice or ghee to keep her family happy. And yes, hormonal changes can also impact a pregnant woman, increasing her appetite, which may lead to weight gain.
The typical physical changes that occur during pregnancy, however, can raise the likelihood of body dissatisfaction in some pregnant and postpartum women. Defined as a negative subjective view of one’s body size or shape, body dissatisfaction can increase the risk of postpartum depression and eating disorders, both of which can have long-term health consequences for mother and child.
Dr Prathima Reddy, Director and Lead Consultant, Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, SPARSH Hospital for Women and Children, Bengaluru, says that they talk to their patients about diet, exercise and weight gain right from the get-go. She observes that between pregnancy and delivery, there is a difference in the attitude of women towards weight gain. “Women are aware that they’re carrying a baby during pregnancy and that the weight gain is natural. I have noticed that the concern about weight loss doesn’t happen straight away because, in the first few weeks, the mother is occupied with the new baby, feeding issues, etc.,” she says. They start thinking about losing weight only six to eight weeks after delivery when they realise that they have not lost weight, says Dr Reddy. She adds that if women have not lost some weight in the months following delivery, it could lead to anxiety, even depression.
Again, this is not true of everyone. Dr Ketoki Mazumdar, a Mumbai-based consultant psychotherapist, says that some women, especially those more concerned about societal standards of appearance, are likely to experience increased body dissatisfaction. “Compared to other times in women’s lives when body shape remains relatively stable, pregnancy may allow for a more powerful test of the factors leading to body image dissatisfaction.”
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However, studying self-love and self-acceptance is important since it could actually assist new moms really feel extra assured, which might come in useful whereas tackling all the motherhood expertise. Taking care of a new child, lack of sleep, and even profession modifications can take a bodily and emotional toll on a brand new mom, factors out Dr Mazumdar.“We are constantly getting bombarded with set beauty and body standards where women in their natural sizes are made to feel uncomfortable. Accepting one’s body and its capabilities of carrying a child and giving birth does lead a mother to have a newer appreciation of her body and helps them focus on their experience of being a mother, helping them in their role transitions and being present for her child(ren),” she says.
Dr Meghana Singhal, a medical psychologist at NIMHANS, Bengaluru, agrees that studying to be comfy in your postpartum physique is important; when a mom has a optimistic physique picture, she could be a good physique picture position mannequin to her youngster, she says. “She can discuss her physique positively, settle for it, and take excellent care of it (similar to by consuming a nutritious diet and exercising). Research has proven that this impacts her child- each ladies and boys-positively. Children choose this up from their moms and do the identical for themselves,” she says.
She lists some ways friends and family can help make expecting mothers more comfortable in their bodies.
- By offering her a safe space to talk and share her feelings.
- By being her accountability buddy in motivating her to exercise (such as accompanying her to a prenatal yoga class)
- By helping her focus on the positive work, her body is doing. By normalising the myriad changes, her body is undergoing.
- By helping her reach out for professional support, such as with a mental health professional, if needed
Divya Naik is a Mumbai-based therapist