af-form-298505444 input,#af-form-298505444 button,#af-form-298505444 textarea,#af-form-298505444 select{font-size:100%;} While some women welcome the challenges of childbirth, others may feel a significant amount of anxiety and concern (Escott et al. 2004; Huizink et al. 2004). Anxiety and stress in pregnancy have been found to be associated with gestational length, with increases in stress and anxiety leading to preterm delivery and declines in stress and anxiety resulting in delivery at term (Glynn et al. 2008; Schetter and Tanner 2012). Preterm birth has adverse implications for foetal neurodevelopment and child outcomes and is the leading cause of infant mortality and morbidity (Schetter and Tanner 2012; Wadhwa et al. 2011). The management of anxiety in pregnant women is therefore of importance to prevent poor outcomes for both the mother and child. Clear, concise and easy to follow techniques which are presented step-by-step, grounded in their scientific benefits

There was a significant decrease in anxiety symptoms in IPT and MFB groups from intake to postpartum p=0.002. Significant decrease in depression symptoms in IPT and MFB ( p<0.001). Worry also decreased ( p<0.001) from intake to the end session of the groups and into the postpartum period. We can feel more able to concentrate, more engaged in life, less preoccupied and simply notice more of the beauties and pleasures of moment-to-moment life. This is vital for the parent-child interaction, which relies on the parent’s awareness of the child’s behaviour, and lays down an important foundation for the child’s later social, emotional, and cognitive abilities. If we are more preoccupied with our own concerns, then we are not available to notice the little signals that our babies are pre-programmed to make and allow them to thrive, which form the basis of secure attachment and their future cognitive development. How to use mindfulness in pregnancy and childbirth In 2014, a study of 47 pregnant women participated in mindfulness classes to help manage their pregnancy anxiety, while the control group within the experiment read a pregnancy book. The group who learned mindfulness techniques reported more significant decreases in their pregnancy-related anxiety.If you think you’d like to embark on a mindfulness practice to help reduce your pregnancy-related stress and potentially aid your baby’s development, the five tips below will help you make your practice effective. Ease into mindfulness This study provides preliminary evidence that a brief mindfulness-based childbirth preparation program during pregnancy can shift child-bearers’ trajectories of distress through one-year post-birth. In particular, we found that participation in MIL (compared to TAU) predicted a decrease in the depressive symptom component of perinatal distress, with trend-level effects on an overall distress aggregate. We further found that those with the greatest mental health needs—i.e., pregnant people with higher anxiety and/or lower mindfulness at baseline—received the most benefit, with significant reductions in distress slopes and lower ending levels of postpartum distress compared to their TAU counterparts. Processes driving these findings and implications for perinatal mental health promotion are considered below.

Becoming pregnant is a beautiful moment in any person's life, but we understand that it can be challenging to keep your body nurtured and supported throughout this journey. Don't worry, DK has got you covered!Autonomic function tests (i.e. heart rate response to immediate standing, standing to lying ratio, heart rate variability and cold pressor test. Perceived stress—Perceived stress scale Shapiro SL, Brown KW, Thoresen C, Plante TG. The moderation of mindfulness-based stress reduction effects by trait mindfulness: results from a randomized controlled trial. J Clin Psychol. 2011;67(3):267–77. Dimidjian S, Segal ZV. Prospects for a clinical science of mindfulness-based intervention. Am Psychol. 2015;70(7):593–620.