Hey there,

when was the last time you ordered something online? Were you annoyed when it didn’t arrive the next day?
Or when was the last time you tried to open a website and it didn’t load instantly?
When was the last time you sent an email and waited for an instant response? And maybe it didn’t come and you lost interest quickly?
Or when did you last have a head ache and you were just going to get a pill? Instead of trying to stretch, hydrate and go to sleep. (I know, I know that’s not always possible to just go to sleep, but you can always stretch and hydrate 😉 )

Do you get where I am going?

We live in a world – where we get programmed to get INSTANT results, INSTANT responses, INSTANT relief, INSTANT delivery etc… and waiting or changing things for the long run, gets harder and harder.
We find it more and more difficult to see the long term results and to put effort into something, that might actually change our problems longer lasting. Instead we just want instant results, that cover the symptoms at least for now.

Being patient is hard, I admit it! You can ask my hubby, I hate waiting.

But still, when it comes to health, it is a very different story. Here I learned so much and I am so passionate about, that I know seeing the long picture matters.

Over and over again, I see new mums being impatient about ‘snapping’ back into their old shape. And it hurts my heart.

a) Because it creates so much pressure and stress, that really no one needs in the postnatal time.
b) It’s just not realistic.

Let’s talk about healing after labour

A lot of mums have unfortunately a very unrealistic picture in their head about what her body is supposed to look like after giving birth. I worked on a maternity ward for a year and let me tell you, most mums walked out there still looking pregnant. And that’s absolutely normal. Their body just did an amazing thing. It grew a whole human being (sometimes more than one), the muscles in her core had to stretch and give way, her pelvic floor had to hold an increasing weight over 40 weeks, it also had to get extremely stretched if there was a vaginal delivery. And sometimes the belly muscles and tissues have to be cut for a caesarean birth. It’s mind blowing!!! There is also an enormous cocktail of hormones floating around, that makes everything a little softer than usual. Add now your body deserves time!!!!

Here are some facts about the phases of wound healing :
* Hemostasis Phase (Clotting) instantly
* Inflammatory Phase (destroying bacteria, remove debris) 24-48h
* Proliferate Phase (rebuilding with new tissue) 4 -24 days
* Maturation Phase (building strength and flexibility) 21days – 2 years
(www.woundsource.com)

Do you see, first of all it needs time for the wound to heal.
There are things you can do to help heal a bit on the quicker side, like hydrating, eating nutritious food and sleeping as much as possible. But it still won’t happen over night.

Now you might say ‘but I didn’t have a cut/tear or a Caesarean birth’. – That’s good for you . Still your core muscles were stretched extremely and still need time to regain their strength and elasticity which takes at least 12 weeks.
Like one of my fellow Holistic Core Restore® Coaches, Amy Jayne Roper said: “If you’ve JUST had a baby, you’re allowed to still look pregnant. You’ve JUST had a baby!” 

When you start looking into exercises you can do, because you want your core to get stronger again you need to keep those facts in mind. You can’t build on a weak foundation. Which is your core.
And also keep in mind that recovering after a pregnancy is a multi faceted approach. Just exercising won’t bring you the same results as including life style, nutrition and rest activities.

While I can’t cover all the factors we can improve to heal quicker and better, right now. I think one stands out for us a mums, that most of us neglect. In fact most adults do.

Sleep!!!!

Sleep has a major effect on our physical healing and well as on our emotional well being.
Many of my clients deal with anxiety, depression, or can’t seem to shift their weight even though they have been working out and eating healthy.
Then it’s time to look at their sleeping patterns. And I hear your mummas with your not sleeping baby and toddlers… I am still fighting my 4 year old, not to come to my bed every night – it is hard. But there is always something you can do.
Ask yourself the question, what is your evening filled with?
I know many mums feel, like they need those precious evening hours to have time without a little being having on them, without anyone asking questions, without having to clean up behind someone else.
But on another note, how productive are you after 10pm? Are you just staying up to watch another show? Are you just staying up to scroll through your phone?
Maybe it’s time to do some selfcare, start setting up a bed time and a bed time routine for yourself and go to sleep early. Your kid is going to wake you up no matter what, but going to bed early might give you 1 or 2 hours of extra sleep.

And I promise you, getting some more sleep over a couple of weeks will already make you feel a lot better. I know it’s not instant. I know it needs discipline, but I also know it will make a difference.

Here is a quote from the book I am currently reading on sleep. Highly recommend it to anyone!!
“For as long as the state of insufficient sleep lasts, and for some time thereafter, the body remains stuck in some degree of a fight-or-flight state. It can last for years in those with an untreated sleep disorder, excessive work hours that limit sleep or its quality, or the simple neglect of sleep by an individual. Like a car engine that is revved to a shrieking extreme for sustained periods of time, your sympathetic nervous system is floored into perpetual overdrive by a lack of sleep. The consequential strain that is placed on your body by the persistent force of sympathetic activation will leak out in all manner of health issues, just like the failed pistons, gaskets, seals, and gnashing gears of an abused car engine.” 
? Matthew Walker, Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams

And only after you have given your body time to heal, then there is the right time to start working out and to become stronger again.

If you need help with your core during pregnancy or after you had your baby, get in touch.

I am happy to help.
Dori