The Ups and Downs of Perinatal Mental Health
In essence, roughly 30% of a baby’s most critical days for optimal development lies within the most emotionally taxing days of its mother’s life.
Perinatal refers to the time during pregnancy and the postpartum period and, as such, spans approximately one year. There is no time in the life of the adult human that one’s body undertakes such daring and seemingly impossible feats and undergoes such drastic changes except the 300-odd days experienced by women during the perinatal period.
From the physical to the hormonal, from dizzying head to swollen toes, the time during pregnancy and beyond is vital in setting a conducive foundation to ensure a healthy mindframe for both mother and child. This 300-day time frame also forms the kick-off to the most important period in a child’s life, that is the first 1,000 days of life – the time spanning roughly between conception and one’s second birthday. “𝐼𝑡 𝑖𝑠 𝑎 𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑞𝑢𝑒 𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑖𝑜𝑑 𝑜𝑓 𝑜𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑦 𝑤ℎ𝑒𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑓𝑜𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠 𝑜𝑓 𝑜𝑝𝑡𝑖𝑚𝑢𝑚 ℎ𝑒𝑎𝑙𝑡ℎ, 𝑔𝑟𝑜𝑤𝑡ℎ, 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑛𝑒𝑢𝑟𝑜𝑑𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑙𝑜𝑝𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝑎𝑐𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑖𝑓𝑒𝑠𝑝𝑎𝑛 𝑎𝑟𝑒 𝑒𝑠𝑡𝑎𝑏𝑙𝑖𝑠ℎ𝑒𝑑.” (Unesco)
In essence, roughly 30% of a baby’s most critical days for optimal development lies within the most emotionally taxing days of its mother’s life. The perinatal period calls for a woman to be her strongest and most useful, when she, in fact, is at her most vulnerable.
The unfortunate issue regarding perinatal mental health is that no one wants to talk about it. The $23 million ‘baby industry’ points women towards thinking about their birth plan (which often doesn’t come to pass), packing the ideal hospital bag, nifty baby gadgets and enjoying luxurious self care during pregnancy, however not many women give thought to a holistic postnatal plan which includes their own physical AND mental well-being.
Some cultures practice traditional rituals which encompass holistic healing. The new mother is encouraged to consume certain types of food and drinks, and to avoid others. Doulas are enlisted to offer post-birth massages for mom and baby and the proverbial village comes together to ensure both emerge from postnatal-hood ready to take on the world. Well, theoretically…
Modern women, with their ever-increasing mental load, often opt to do away with some, if not all, of their cultural rituals. Modern-day grannies are also often out of touch with their traditional roots. And so the village is slowly demolished.
Which group do you fall in? Are you all for postnatal rituals? Or do you think they are old-fashioned, unnecessary?
Please leave your thoughts in the comments below.
Stay well, inside and out
Waheeda, a.k.a Waydi
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