Childbearing Year

Fatigue and Mood Changes

Fatigue and Mood Changes
Excerpt from  Wise Woman Herbal for the Childbearing Year


Hormonal changes, emotional changes, physical changes, and all the attendant stresses of pregnancy may cause extreme fatigue and emotional swings, especially during the last trimester. One midwife advises: "This is the perfect opportunity to touch your own deep emotional truths . . . to acknowledge and resolve your inner disharmonies, and to recreate your life as you create another life. The emotional changes experienced during pregnancy are not to be avoided, but valued; they are cathartic and valid." Use exercise, relaxation, meditation, diet, and herbs to improve your energy and moods, but don't neglect emotional and spiritual work.

Feeling Energetic and Peaceful

° Regular moderate exercise combined with affirmations and creative visualizations tones the body and the mind. Ten minutes of exercise done regularly does more to prevent fatigue and depression than an occasional arduous workout.

° Deep relaxation is a powerful tool for easing emotional and physical stress. It can be done as a break in the day's demands, just before sleep, or just after waking. See page 62 for a complete relaxation to read or tape.

° Meditation refreshes and centers the mind.

° Affirmations, visualizations, and forms of active or guided meditation, are important emotional and psychic tools, and are easy to use. Check the resource listing at the end of this chapter for self-help guides to learning and using these skills.

° Indulgence (of yourself, not your obsessions) helps prevent fatigue and depression. Give yourself time to read and relax and create and be easy. Take a stern stand with your guilt about keeping the house clean, or making breakfast for everyone, or excelling at your work, or whatever you ride yourself about. There will be plenty to do when the baby is born; don't exhaust yourself now.


Diet and Herbs for Even Emotions

° Your body's need for minerals and proteins soars during pregnancy. Lack of either registers as a craving for sweets.

Eating sugar may case blood sugar swings, fatigue, and depression. Eliminate white sugar, and restrict honey, fructose, maple syrup, etc. Focus on high protein snacks, such as nuts, yogurt, popcorn with nutritional yeast, sardines, and cheese.

° Raspberry leaf infusion calms; adds up to half as much Peppermint or Spearmint for a lift of spirits and a renewed sense of energy.

° Burdock, Blessed Thistle, and Sarsaparilla are bitter tonics. Occasional use helps keep your emotions on an even keel and makes a nice change from your daily Nettle or Raspberry leaf brew.

° Motherwort tincture calms without causing drowsiness, making it ideal as an ally at work and at home, whenever pressure and stress threaten to overwhelm you. Try five drops in a small glass of water to restore emotional balance. Allow fifteen minutes for the full effect to come on; repeat if necessary, as frequently as every two hours during times of particular upset. Motherwort tincture works best when combined with a short break from the day's routine to stretch, breathe, relax, and return to center.
CAUTION: Limit use of Motherwort if you begin to feel that you can't get through the day without it, as this calming herb may be psychologically habit forming.

° Skullcap tincture provides deep, refreshing sleep. Take up to thirty drops of commercial tincture (from dried plants) or 5-15 drops of fresh plant tincture half an hour before you go to bed. An infusion of the dried plant nourishes and strengthens the nerves. Drink two cups daily for several months if your nerves feel frayed and you are easily upset.

Excerpt from  Wise Woman Herbal for the Childbearing Year

Chaste Berry

Chaste Berry Bush

Susun Weed shows us her Chaste berry aka Vitex. Chaste berry is a wonderful herb for womens issues.

Postpartum Depression

Postpartum Depression

Herbalist Susun Weed speaks on the topic of postpartum depression. Spend a day with baby goats! Drinking nourishing herbal infusions can prevent and treat postpartum depression. Oatstraw and red clover infusions and motherwort tincture helps ease anxiety.

Motherwort the Healer

Motherwort the Healer

Susun Weed teaches about the healing properties motherwort has for the body, mind and spirit. She also talks briefly about daylilies and how they aid women.

Fatigue and Mood Changes

Fatigue and Mood Changes

Excerpt from: Wise Woman Herbal for the Childbearing Year

Hormonal changes, emotional changes, physical changes, and all the attendant stresses of pregnancy may cause extreme fatigue and emotional swings, especially during the last trimester. One midwife advises: "This is the perfect opportunity to touch your own deep emotional truths . . . to acknowledge and resolve your inner disharmonies, and to recreate your life as you create another life. The emotional changes experienced during pregnancy are not to be avoided, but valued; they are cathartic and valid." Use exercise, relaxation, meditation, diet, and herbs to improve your energy and moods, but don't neglect emotional and spiritual work.

Feeling Energetic and Peaceful
° Regular moderate exercise combined with affirmations and creative visualizations tones the body and the mind. Ten minutes of exercise done regularly does more to prevent fatigue and depression than an occasional arduous workout.

° Deep relaxation is a powerful tool for easing emotional and physical stress. It can be done as a break in the day's demands, just before sleep, or just after waking. See page 62 for a complete relaxation to read or tape.

° Meditation refreshes and centers the mind.

° Affirmations, visualizations, and forms of active or guided meditation, are important emotional and psychic tools, and are easy to use. Check the resource listing at the end of this chapter for self-help guides to learning and using these skills.

° Indulgence (of yourself, not your obsessions) helps prevent fatigue and depression. Give yourself time to read and relax and create and be easy. Take a stern stand with your guilt about keeping the house clean, or making breakfast for everyone, or excelling at your work, or whatever you ride yourself about. There will be plenty to do when the baby is born; don't exhaust yourself now.

 Diet and Herbs for Even Emotions
° Your body's need for minerals and proteins soars during pregnancy. Lack of either registers as a craving for sweets.

Eating sugar may case blood sugar swings, fatigue, and depression. Eliminate white sugar, and restrict honey, fructose, maple syrup, etc. Focus on high protein snacks, such as nuts, yogurt, popcorn with nutritional yeast, sardines, and cheese.

° Raspberry leaf infusion calms; adds up to half as much Peppermint or Spearmint for a lift of spirits and a renewed sense of energy.

° Burdock, Blessed Thistle, and Sarsaparilla are bitter tonics. Occasional use helps keep your emotions on an even keel and makes a nice change from your daily Nettle or Raspberry leaf brew.

° Motherwort tincture calms without causing drowsiness, making it ideal as an ally at work and at home, whenever pressure and stress threaten to overwhelm you. Try five drops in a small glass of water to restore emotional balance. Allow fifteen minutes for the full effect to come on; repeat if necessary, as frequently as every two hours during times of particular upset. Motherwort tincture works best when combined with a short break from the day's routine to stretch, breathe, relax, and return to center.
CAUTION: Limit use of Motherwort if you begin to feel that you can't get through the day without it, as this calming herb may be psychologically habit forming.

° Skullcap tincture provides deep, refreshing sleep. Take up to thirty drops of commercial tincture (from dried plants) or 5-15 drops of fresh plant tincture half an hour before you go to bed. An infusion of the dried plant nourishes and strengthens the nerves. Drink two cups daily for several months if your nerves feel frayed and you are easily upset.

Excerpt from: Wise Woman Herbal for the Childbearing Year

Wise Woman Herbal for the Childbearing Year

 

 

Herbal Allies for Post Partum Anxiety

Hi there-

I did some research on how to help combat Post Partum Anxiety Disorder and came across tea infusions w/ red clover, oat straw and lemon balm (taken separately).  (My problem is feeling extremely frustrated/angry/out of control since having my second child . . . I have a 2 yr old and a 9 month old who likes to night time feed a lot, so I am not getting a whole lot of sleep either).

I thought taking these tea's would improve my mood as well as help w/ milk production.  I took oat straw for a week and felt pretty good.

Now I am on red clover, but I am not sure it is helping.  I feel like it may be affecting my 9 month old as her night time feedings went from 3-4 hour intervals to 1-1.5 hour intervals.

I have also been reading nursing women should not take red clover becuase of unknown side effects.

Can anyone there confirm whether the red clover may be bothering my 9 month old or if I should not be taking it??  I only drink 1-2 8oz cups a day for 7 days and then switch.

Any help would be greater appreciated...

Hello,

I have not heard of red clover causing problems with feedings, in fact, many women drink the infusions to help with milk production. Some herbalists avoid red clover due to the phytoestrogens it contains, but Susun does not include it on her avoid list. Many of us, myself included drank it throughout pregnancy and nursing. However, you need to decide what feels right for you, so if you think it may be causing these issues, I would stop using it and see what happens.

The oatstraw is important for helping you with your frustrated feelings and anxiety. You say tea infusions, so I just am including this link to make sure that you are preparing these as true infusions. http://www.susunweed.com/How_to_make_Infusions.htm

Oatstraw is both soothing, nourishing and promotes a strong nervous system and absolutely a wonderful ally for you at this time.

Some other ideas for calming your emotions would be a tea from german chamomile flowers; motherwort tincture: use 5 drops in a glass of water when feeling overwhelmed, repeat as needed, but do remember that excessive use (more than 4 doses a day for several weeks) can cause you to become dependent on it. You can also try skullcap tincture, again 5 drops in a glass of water when needed. This is not habit forming. Let us know if we can be of further assistance.

blessings,

Kim
Wise Woman Team
www.wisewomanweb.com

www.wisewomanuniversity.org

www.wisewomanbookshop.com

 

You can get your health questions answered by Susun in one of two ways. Join the health hotline teleseminar on Monday and Thursday evenings 8pm EST, through the winter months. Or you may register for a private telephone consultation. You can also join the free women's health forum where hundreds of wise woman can help you. Sign up for the free herbal healing ezine, filled with wise woman wit and wisdom. Visit the Wise Woman Bookshop for online university, gift shop, bookshop, digital downloads, and more. Go to www.susunweed.com for a complete list of offerings including radio show and free videos.