“”If you don’t believe in God, it may help to remember this great line of Geneen Roth’s: ‘that awareness is learning to keep yourself company.’ And then learn to be more compassionate company, as if you were somebody you are fond of and wish to encourage. I doubt that you would read a close friend’s Read More
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Sleep Time–Some Help
“Sleep when your baby does,” can be difficult advice to follow when you have one baby, with two children it can be almost impossible. In this last post in the series based on Dan Siegel’s, The Healthy Mind Platter ,we look at the last serving and maybe the most challenging of all: Sleep Time, “When we Read More
Thoughts meander like a restless wind…
“Thoughts meander like a restless wind inside a letter box. They tumble blindly as they make their way across the universe” John Lennon This is the second to last post in the series on nourishing the postpartum brain, adapted from Dan Siegel’s Healthy Mind Platter. This week I invite you to give your brain some downtime Read More
The Silence Beneath…Time In
“Draw alongside the silence of stone until it’s calmness can claim you.” –-John O’Donohue ( lines from “Blessings for the Exhausted”) “Behind your image, below your words, above your thoughts, the silence of another world waits.” — John O’Donohue (lines from “Anam Cara: A book of Celtic Wisdom”) Every parent knows the thousand sounds a Read More
Meanwhile, I Keep Dancing…
“I get up. I walk. I fall down. Meanwhile, I keep dancing.”–Daniel Hillel A new mamma said recently, “I went into pregnancy with one body and came out with someone else’s, I think they did a switch at the hospital.” Does this sound familiar? Are you having trouble feeling at ease in your body Read More
Sex or a Nap? Connecting Time
“Having a baby is like suddenly getting the world’s worst roommate.” Anne Lamott I had a friend who once said, “I have a baby on my boob, a partner who wants sex, and all I really want is to be left alone.” Dr. Sara Gottfried asked a large group of women if they would choose Read More
Play It Again
“And forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair”— Khalil Gibran One day, I woke up and realized I had forgotten how to play. I had been an expert as a child. Many parents get overwhelmed with the responsibility of caring for a Read More
Focus Time
“There is ecstasy in paying attention.”–Anne Lamott From Distracted to Focused Have you ever had this experience? You get in the car, drive somewhere, arrive 10 minutes later not knowing how you got there? It’s scary, magical and all too familiar, right? You were on automatic pilot; your attention was somewhere else. We spend much Read More
Postpartum Food For Mind and Emotions
Many parents, some 15%-20%, suffer from perinatal mood disorders including postpartum depression. These disorders are an expression of stress- overload. There are many reasons why parents are vulnerable to stress after childbirth. When the demands of parenthood outweigh internal and external resources, over time, the result can be anxiety and depression. Not enough sleep, isolation, Read More
Criticism—Cooling the Hot and Prickly
I don’t know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody. –Bill Cosby Why is it that as soon as you have a child, the world thinks you are fair game for criticism? From the time your belly rounds out, total strangers feel compelled to advise, correct and redirect. Read More