How to Alleviate Perinatal Stress During Covid-19
It should be no secret that 1 in 5 to 7 women and 1 in 10 men experience some form of depression across the perinatal spectrum. Add in racial disparities in the healthcare system and socio-economic factors and the number of individuals experiencing Perinatal stress increases significantly. Now multiply the increase in stress by the stress of living through a pandemic and I am certain everyone is just plain TIRED.
How does one combat perinatal stress in the age of Covid-19? A good starting point would be refocusing, reframing, and reimagining.
Refocus your thoughts- 2020 came in and threw all it had at us to knock us off balance. We are now nine months in and there is no better time than to take a moment to collect our thoughts and refocus. As you go throughout your day, notice your thoughts. Do they serve you—that is do your thoughts provide comfort, instill hope, or muster up motivation? If the answer is no, that is okay. Remember thoughts are not reality. They are like pillowy clouds, we see them but we cannot touch them. Remember laying out on the grass as a kid and cloud watching with a friend or love one? You saw a kangaroo and your friend saw a bear. You both saw an image in the clouds but much like our thoughts they can serve us differently. Fortunately, just as quickly as the clouds entered your peripheral they floated right on by, much like our thoughts. Refocusing our thoughts is a practice. If the thoughts do not serve you, allow them to pass through. Focus on positive thoughts and allow its affects to sit with you.
Reimagine your values. Have you ever wondered what life would look like if everyone could read your thoughts and act accordingly? Unfortunately, very few of us are skilled Mediums. Take a few moments and allow yourself the opportunity to identify helpful support and needs. As you identify these values keep in mind they should address your frustration and sense of feeling overwhelmed. A source of discomfort may be that you are unaware of what support is needed to get you through this stressful period. We know you are capable of handling stress on a daily basis, but let us reimagine a life of allowing others to step in and provide support. Focus on dismantling the narrative placed on you by society and imagine a world where you are in charge of letting yourself and others around you know it is time to honor and value your needs.
Reframe the narrative. Now that we have a new focus, let’s reframe and create a new narrative. Let us imagine what life could look like if we checked in with ourselves and evaluated what we needed at this very moment. What would it mean to put you first? For so long black women have placed the needs of others before their own. A reframed narrative would look like setting firm boundaries and bringing focus and attention to your needs first before you give to others because you cannot pour from an empty cup. If the help is offered, take that brave first step and accept. It takes a lot of mental and emotional strength to admit that you may need a hand or two, but what comes out of the help received is an opportunity for you to rest—refocus, reimagine, and reframe.