I have never felt so exhausted in my life.
Ah, yes. There’s exhaustion—and then there’s the extreme exhaustion of early parenthood. And being tired is only the half of it. You’re forgetful, emotional, irritable, and you feel like a zombie. And your ability to figure out ways to problem-solve your way out of this sleep deprivation labyrinth are, well, non-existent.
That’s why you need other people to help problem-solve this one for you—parents who’ve been there, not-slept-through-that, and lived to tell. Here are five quick tips from veterans of the sleep deprivation trenches.
- Keep your energy up by taking good care of your body. Feed yourself nutritious food and exercise to re-energize yourself.
- Delegate anything and everything you can. You can’t delegate breastfeeding and spending time getting to know your baby with your partner and/or your other children. Pretty much anything else can be managed by someone else.
- Create a sleep-friendly environment in your bedroom. That way, when you do have the opportunity to sleep, you’ll be able to drift off quickly. Your room should be cool and dark and it should be free of distractions like smartphones. You’ll be tempted to tweet rather than sleep.
- Experiment with methods of relaxation that help you to drift off to sleep until you find the one that’s right for you. (You may find that you’re wired after a day of motherhood and that you find it difficult to relax even though you’re totally exhausted.)
- Celebrate the gift of even a 15-minute nap. Rather than refusing to relax and close your eyes because your baby may need you at any time, decide that you’d rather have a short reprieve than no break at all.
Embrace the mantra of all wise mamas: this too shall pass. And it will. It’s just hard to remember that right now.
Comments
Great post. I think for a lot of parents, just normalizing the fact that sleep is interrupted is a great start. It is hard to ever see the end of the sleeplessness. I wish I had that insight when my boy was under 14 months. I kept thinking something was abnormal with how he wouldn’t sleep through the night. Now, reflecting on it, I realize just how normal it truly was. I just did’t get it at the time.
The three rules for new mommies:
Never stand when you can sit.
Never sit when you can be lying down.
Never stay awake when you can be sleeping.
Thanks very much for the very wise feedback.
Mama in the City: I agree. Knowing that sleep deprivation is normal does make it easier to cope with. (If you think it’s a problem, then you feel pressured to try to find a solution, and that just makes life more stressful for you and your baby.)
Cruising: So true! You’re inspiring me to want to take a nap right now. (And my youngest is 13.)
I am a Biofeedback Practitioner and from the 7 years of working with families I have found that the problem of not sleeping is worse. I believe the reason for this has to do with Electro magnetic Radiation that comes from the wired and wi-fi technologies that are in our homes. i have been offering a line of products that will offer intervention and are patented and proven to work.
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