Pregnancy is a time when a woman’s life is changing, as she is transitioning into the new phase of her life. Emotions during pregnancy may witness an upheaval as a woman’s body goes through several changes over a period of nine months. These changes pose different challenges, and one needs to adapt to several changes. So, it is important for women to take care of their health – physically as well as mentally.
 
While mood swings in pregnancy are common, there is a need to address emotional health. The first step towards overall wellbeing during pregnancy starts with acknowledging that your mental and emotional health is as important as physical health. You need to start educating yourself about possible emotional stress during pregnancy. And the next important step is to start building awareness about the  emotional space which needs to be created.

When a woman is pregnant, she carries another human being within her. Therefore, you need to make your mental and emotional well-being all the more important. Women have been conditioned to think of pregnancy as a happy, enjoyable, and exciting experience. Not much is spoken on how to handle emotions during pregnancy. Pregnancy comes with several hormonal changes, and there are bound to be ups and downs that create emotional stress during pregnancy.

It is necessary to build your own awareness about your  emotional as well as mental strength

During the nine months, a woman experiences a gamut of emotions (some known and some entirely new ones). A woman’s moods and emotions can range from the highs of feeling overjoyed about having a baby to the lows of feeling impatient and scared as the delivery date approaches. These emotions and feelings can create a sense of inadequacy. These pregnancy emotions may leave you feeling overwhelmed.

So it is very important to build your own Mental and Emotional space of Comfort & Strength.
  
In many ways it is important and necessary to build awareness about your own emotional and mental strength and create a supporting environment. What happens within the mind has an impact on the physical body and vice-versa.

Are you wondering how to handle emotions during pregnancy? Read 4 areas related to manage your emotional space and reduce emotional stress during pregnancy.

Handling Emotions During Pregnancy

• Giving yourself permission to feel the emotions you feel: Women need to give themselves permission to feel the pregnancy emotions.  The social and  cultural conditioning often allows only the ‘good and the bright side’ to be discussed and focused upon. The intention of this thought process is noble, however, the focus remains only on one specific emotion. Only the feel-good emotions are welcome in this space. The emotions that might ‘not be so good’ are often ignored. There is no permission for feeling uncomfortable and no knowledge to handle emotional stress during pregnancy. So it is important to tell yourself and remind yourself time and again that ‘All pregnancy emotions you experience need to be acknowledged’. 


• Attending to your emotional cravings: Secondly, a conscious effort should be made to connect with one’s emotional needs. I call them the emotional cravings. But, because we are conditioned to openly express only the good feelings, we tend to ignore or brush aside the uncomfortable thoughts and other emotions during pregnancy. Also, it is possible that in the day-to-day fast pace of life we also miss out on the positive feelings that might be surfacing. So, it is important to connect to your pregnancy emotions and address your emotional cravings too. For example, if you feel like talking to someone about some discomfort you are experiencing, do not brush aside the feeling. Or, if you feel like listening to some music, or watching something you always loved, then do the  stuff when you feel like doing it. Avoid putting it on hold. It is important to pay attention and connect with the emotions to reduce negative emotions during pregnancy.

Emotions during pregnancy may witness an upheaval as a woman’s body goes through several changes over a period of nine months. 

• Building awareness about your mental and emotional strength: It is necessary to build your own awareness about your emotional as well as mental strength. You need to reaffirm your capabilities. Though a woman is constantly going through changes and challenges during this period, there are some inherent qualities and emotional strengths every woman has which she needs to reinforce within herself. In the flood of thoughts and emotions during pregnancy triggered by hormonal changes, it is easy to lose touch with your core qualities and strengths. And, that is why, it is very important to keep reminding yourself of the strengths you have. For example, maybe you are good at time management. You can enforce the thoughts such as, “This will be a useful skill for me in my journey of nine months as well as a new mother.” Or if you are good at planning things, you can say to yourself often, “I can use this ability to plan my days and resources in the most effective manner.” One of the best ways to deal with fear and anxiety is reinforcing positive beliefs and strengths to handle emotions during pregnancy.


• Avoiding the trap of being a self-critic: If you are not aware about your thoughts and feelings, then it can lead to being self-critical and lead to overthinking about different imagined scenarios that might happen. So one needs to be mindful about not falling into the trap of self-judgment, comparison with other women, and overthinking. 

By creating this space for yourself, you will be taking your first steps towards your Emotional and Mental well-being during your journey of pregnancy.

Working with a Mental Strength Professional will surely help you in building your own strengths and be better prepared to navigate through each trimester with knowledge, awareness, and confidence. If you are wondering how to handle emotions during pregnancy, then you’ve taken a step to acknowledge your emotions! Connect with us, now to receive step-by-step guidance which is highly beneficial for every stage of your pregnancy. Build a stronger version of you who can manage pregnancy emotions with ease. So, don’t wait. Book your appointment with a Mental Strength Professional.