The emotional highs and lows of pregnancy

The emotional highs and lows of pregnancy

It is utterly normal to experience heightened emotional moods during pregnancy thanks to the abundance of hormones flying around your system. Add to this physical reason the possible mixed feelings you may have about the impending responsibility of becoming a mother and it can all start to feel a little overwhelming.

The first thing to do is to acknowledge that you are not superwoman. We all have expectations about how we would like to experience this time of our life and sometimes we are too hard on ourselves. The popular images of young, beautiful, and pregnant celebrities depicted out socialising, with effortless grace and a smile on their face, is a familiar sight in recent times. However, these images are only that. Images. You would not be human, if you did not feel: happy, sad, worried, tired, angry, confused and insecure at different points during your pregnancy. You are not a robot and you haven’t been airbrushed! Accept that this is a time of great change, both mentally and physically, and you will realise that this conflict of emotions is actually perfectly normal.

Explain to your partner how you are feeling rather than bottling it all up and potentially taking it out on him. See our section on making time for one another and mood swings for more information. Also be aware that, if you do not have any respite from your negative symptoms, you might be experiencing depression. See our section on antenatal depression for more details. It always helps to talk to someone else, so talk to your friends about how you are feeling.

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Last Modified: 05/07/2007
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