I regularly forgot my own vitamins after having my first baby, and I also had a thyroid problem that went undiagnosed for longer than I wish it had. So these are two things I now always remind new mums about, and I’ll be reminding myself of them during my second maternity leave too.
1. Please Don’t Forget Your Postnatal Vitamins.
Your body has just gone through a huge change and needs some extra nutrients!
Iron levels commonly fall during pregnancy and around delivery, particularly if you’ve had significant blood loss or developed anaemia, so it’s important to make sure these are replenished.
Vitamin D (which we can only get via the sun) is also very important, especially if, like me, you had a Winter baby and by the time you eventually mustered the energy to leave the house, it was dark 10 minutes later…
If you’re breastfeeding, calcium is particularly important because your body is supplying calcium to your baby through breast milk. It can be difficult to get enough calcium through diet alone, so calcium supplementation is often helpful and is particularly important for maintaining your own bone health.
2. A General Blood Profile Can Be Helpful If You’re Not Feeling Quite Right.
If you’re feeling excessively tired (I appreciate a difficult one to gauge as a new mum..), struggling to lose weight or having difficulty with milk supply, it’s worth checking your thyroid level.
Post partum thyroiditis is actually fairly common and affects up to 10% of mothers within the first year of giving birth.
Low iron, low b12, low folate and low vitamin D can also contribute to fatigue.
If you would like to discuss any of the above further please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
