Handling the Holidays While Pregnant

December 5th, 2017 | Holidays, Pregnancy

Holidays are Stressful Enough…

Handling the holidays can be difficult for anyone.  Just after Halloween, the party invitations stack up next to the Christmas cards you wanted to send out, then the pressure to make those perfect cookies mounts up.  Stress for anyone.  But dealing with pregnancy during the holidays can mount up the pressure even higher.  Here are some good tips to help keep your stress low during holiday hustle.

Slow Down

The world will not end if you do not attend a few parties or send out cards.  But if you love doing those tasks, keep it light.  Attend a few less parties and cut that Christmas card list down a little bit.  It is OK to choose to stay home to rest, especially if you have been dealing with morning sickness.  Remember that reducing stress is important for your health and the health of your baby, and removing those imposed deadlines and events will go a long way to reducing stress.

Have Christmas at Home

Some families like to travel over the holidays and that is great!  Kids like to visit grandma and grandpa, but during pregnancy it might be best to host the extended family dinner at your home.  Give the family plenty of notice and find out if your parents can visit you this year to help with the preparations.  Staying at home means more rest, and more rest means a healthier pregnancy.  If you are opting to stay home, keep your room sacred and retire there for peace and quiet if you need a rest.  Let someone else handle those dishes!

Careful with Those Cookies

We all tend to overeat during the holidays.  Pregnant women need to be extra vigilant to make sure the diet stays healthy.  While it may be OK to have a few extra Christmas cookies, be careful not to overindulge in foods that will complicate your health or pregnancy.  This would be a good year to abstain from drinking anything alcoholic.  Slowing down an attending fewer parties as we said above will help curb the extra snacks, but remember your eating decisions affect you and your baby.

These ideas will help you have a more restful holiday season.  The bottom line of all this is to take care of yourself.  Get plenty of rest and seek out help if you need it.  No one will be offended if your pregnancy slows you down this year.