{"id":2957,"date":"2026-10-11T17:35:08","date_gmt":"2026-10-11T06:35:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ootw.au\/becomingus\/?p=2957"},"modified":"2026-10-11T17:35:08","modified_gmt":"2026-10-11T06:35:08","slug":"dealing-with-postpartum-postnatal-anxiety","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ootw.au\/becomingus\/dealing-with-postpartum-postnatal-anxiety\/","title":{"rendered":"Dealing with Postpartum\/Postnatal Anxiety"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"et_pb_section_0 et_pb_section et_section_regular et_block_section preset--module--divi-section--flp8phd7sh\">\n<div class=\"et_pb_row_0 et_pb_row et_block_row\">\n<div class=\"et_pb_column_0 et_pb_column et_pb_column_4_4 et-last-child et_block_column et_pb_css_mix_blend_mode_passthrough\">\n<div class=\"et_pb_text_0 et_pb_text et_pb_bg_layout_light et_pb_module et_block_module preset--module--divi-text--ws8pmk15hx\"><div class=\"et_pb_text_inner\"><div class=\"sqs-block html-block sqs-block-html\" data-block-type=\"2\" data-sqsp-block=\"text\" id=\"block-e7c15c3220e8a0da1622\">\n<div class=\"sqs-block-content\" id=\"yui_3_17_2_1_1791700195694_246\">\n<div class=\"sqs-html-content\" data-sqsp-text-block-content=\"\" id=\"yui_3_17_2_1_1791700195694_245\">\n<p>If you\u2019re working with a mother who can\u2019t switch off, is plagued with questions, finding it hard to sleep and who needs constant reassurance, you may be dealing with Postpartum\/Postnatal Anxiety. By knowing the factors that increase risk &#8211; \u00a0and the signs to look for &#8211; new families can get help earlier.<\/p>\n<p>And many will need it, because PPA\/PNA is extremely common. In fact, a recent study from Monash University in Australia found that around <strong>one third of new mothers and 17% of new dads are experiencing anxiety symptoms<\/strong> in the first six months post baby.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p><strong>Anxiety symptoms are distressing at any time in life, but even more so when you have a young baby to care for.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>How do you know if you\u2019re dealing with anxiety? Symptoms include:<\/p>\n<ul data-rte-list=\"default\">\n<li>Not sleeping well even though they\u2019re exhausted<\/li>\n<li>Feeling lethargic or unmotivated, but at the same time also restless and like they \u201cshould be doing something\u201d<\/li>\n<li>Loss of appetite and sometimes weight loss<\/li>\n<li>Constant worry, feeling on edge, a sense of dread or imagining the worst<\/li>\n<li>Panic attacks<\/li>\n<li>Needing to have everything perfect or under control<\/li>\n<li>Racing thoughts, feeling like they\u2019re \u201cgoing crazy\u201d or \u201closing it\u201d<\/li>\n<li>Physical complaints such as upset stomach, feeling light headed, short of breath, hot flushes<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>If this sounds like your client, or they\u2019ve noticed these symptoms in their partner, refer them to their G.P. Because <strong>anxiety is common, temporary and very treatable<\/strong>, especially if it\u2019s caught early.<\/p>\n<p>If the anxiety is mild, it may be enough for a momma or dad to realize what the underlying issue is and <strong>make certain lifestyle changes to cope<\/strong> with it. Regular exercise is both a <strong>natural anti-anxiety and antidepressant<\/strong>, so support your clients to build this into their week, starting off small if they need to. Low blood sugar levels can increase anxiety, so it helps to eat small meals regularly, especially if momma is breastfeeding.<\/p>\n<p>Relaxation techniques, such as deep breathing, conscious muscle relaxation or listening to guided meditations can help. There\u2019s some great apps for this, so check them out. Many find meditation difficult to begin with &#8211; <strong>it\u2019s like building a new muscle<\/strong>. Parents may need to experiment with different techniques, but the multiple benefits make it worth persevering!<\/p>\n<p>Feeling disconnected (from partner, family, friends, life or ourself!) increases risk for anxiety. So where possible, support your clients to maintain old connections or foster new ones. <strong>Connection gives us a sense of emotional wellbeing<\/strong>, so it\u2019s important to schedule in regular time with people and activities that enable this. Other simple ways to help clients relax and ground themselves are through artwork, reading, yoga or even watching re-runs of a favorite TV show.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Husbands or partners can often unknowingly make anxiety worse<\/strong>, and this is distressing for both parents. Anxiety can increase tension and conflict levels between partners and then this can negatively affect babies. For all these reasons it\u2019s vital that <strong>partners<\/strong> <strong>understand what\u2019s going on and know how to respond<\/strong> in an emotionally supportive way.<\/p>\n<p>If this is outside your area of expertise, encourage couples to make an appointment with a family therapist or relationship counselor if they need help with this &#8211; and most do. The good news here is effective couple work at this time also builds strong family foundations. Lovely stuff!<\/p>\n<p>If you\u2019re working with a client who is pregnant, <strong>there\u2019s lots you can do to minimize the risks<\/strong> for anxiety in the postpartum period. One of the simplest and most effective ways is to include \u201cafter the baby comes\u201d and \u201crelationship preparation\u201d information along with your normal program. Research shows that having more realistic ideas of life with baby, knowing what the challenges are and how to prepare for them as a couple, can not only reduce risks for anxiousness, but set couples up for a better beginning for their family. Research also tells us this type of <strong>parenthood<\/strong> <strong>preparation leads to better birth outcomes<\/strong>, so that\u2019s great news too!<\/p>\n<p>To learn more about the different types of anxiety disorders, see the COPE website:<a href=\"http:\/\/cope.org.au\/first-year\/postnatal-mental-health-conditions\/postnatal-anxiety\/\"> <\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cope.org.au\/new-parents\/postnatal-mental-health-conditions\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span>http:\/\/cope.org.au\/first-year\/postnatal-mental-health-conditions\/postnatal-anxiety\/<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"et_pb_text_1 et_pb_text et_pb_bg_layout_light et_pb_module et_block_module preset--group--divi-text--divi-font-header--default preset--module--divi-text--default\"><div class=\"et_pb_text_inner\"><p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h5>If you want to learn more about how you can help parents prepare for their &#8216;new normal&#8217; and find new ways of dealing with parental stress, check out our Becoming Us Professional Training.<\/h5>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n<div class=\"et_pb_module et_pb_button_module_wrapper et_pb_button_0_wrapper preset--group--divi-button--divi-button--nested--1pcqfhrzkd_wrapper preset--module--divi-button--41dabf1f-0173-4c88-b4f5-0e34c51364ff_wrapper\"><a class=\"et_pb_button_0 et_pb_button et_pb_bg_layout_dark et_pb_module et_flex_module preset--group--divi-button--divi-button--nested--1pcqfhrzkd preset--module--divi-button--41dabf1f-0173-4c88-b4f5-0e34c51364ff\" href=\"https:\/\/ootw.au\/becomingus\/courses\/\" data-icon=\"5\">Learn More<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you\u2019re working with a mother who can\u2019t switch off, is plagued with questions, is finding it hard to sleep and who needs constant reassurance, you may be dealing with Postpartum\/Postnatal Anxiety. By knowing the factors that increase risk &#8211;  and the signs to look for &#8211; new families can get help earlier.  <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2946,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[55,54],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2957","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-postnatal","category-postpartum"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ootw.au\/becomingus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2957","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ootw.au\/becomingus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ootw.au\/becomingus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ootw.au\/becomingus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ootw.au\/becomingus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2957"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/ootw.au\/becomingus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2957\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2959,"href":"https:\/\/ootw.au\/becomingus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2957\/revisions\/2959"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ootw.au\/becomingus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2946"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ootw.au\/becomingus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2957"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ootw.au\/becomingus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2957"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ootw.au\/becomingus\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2957"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}