10 Tips For Surviving Bedrest
When you’re walking around, huge and pregnant, bedrest can sound like a fantastic idea, but when it gets right down to it, being on bedrest is hard. Laying in bed all day can get very uncomfortable and boring, and when you have other children or a job that you’re worried about, it can also be stressful. On top of all that is the worry about your baby, and whatever is going on in your pregnancy that has landed you on bedrest in the first place.
Today, I’m going to share ten tips for surviving bedrest, straight from my own experiences of a week of hospitalized bedrest with my preemie, and a month of bedrest at home with our son (that time it was worth it because we made it to 39 weeks!).
- Ask for help early and often. Don’t be afraid of imposing. If someone tells you to call if you need anything, do it. Ask for help entertaining your kids, making meals, or running errands. Don’t be embarrassed to admit you need help, because it’s for the good of both you and your baby.
- Give up control. Face it now and get over it - your laundry and housework probably isn’t going to get done the way you’d do it, and you’re family might have a few too many fast food suppers. That’s life right now. If you’re having a hard time accepting these things just think, would it be worth your baby being sick in the NICU to have your towels folded the way you want them?
- Learn something new. Ask your friend to bring over some supplies and teach you to knit, scrapbook, etc. You have plenty of time right now that you won’t have once you have a baby to chase after, so take the time and make something pretty!
Join an online movie rental club. Netflix and Blockbuster both have services that allow you to select movies online and have them delivered straight to your home. That way, you can make your selections, and they arrive in your mailbox, without you having to trust your husband to come back from the video store with something other than old karate flix.
- Ask someone to take the kids. They don’t need to take them forever. Even a day free from worrying about how to entertain your other kids from your spot on the couch can be significant stress reliever.
- Ask friends and family to visit. Having a friend or family member to chat with face to face can be a great distraction from the fact that you can’t get up. Don’t worry about your hair and your makeup, or whether your house is clean enough. Your friends and family will understand, and they might even pitch in on a chore or two while they’re over.
- Borrow your friends’ favorite books and magazines. When your friends drop in for that visit we just mentioned, ask them to bring over any magazines or good books they have lying around. You’ll be surprised how many books you can read if you’re alone on the couch for any significant length of time.
- Get a massage. Check with your doctor to make sure it’s ok, and then find a massage therapist who makes house calls. They can help work out some of the sore spots and tension that develop from lying down all day.
- Take plenty of naps. You’ll be surprised how tiring it can be to stay in bed all day. Get plenty of rest, because once baby is here, that will all go out the window.
- Remind yourself why you’re doing this. By listening to your doctor’s orders and staying off your feet, you could be gaining precious days for your baby in the womb. Each day you manage to stay pregnant will shave at least a day or two off your baby’s NICU stay, even if they still arrive early. Your baby has lots of growing and developing to do, that is best done on the inside. When you feel frustrated and ready to give up, remind yourself what an important thing you are doing for your baby.
I hope these idea help make your days on bedrest more pleasant. If you’re coping with raising other kids while on bedrest, or you have a friend on bedrest, check back over the next week for helpful tips and advice specifically for you! If you don’t want to miss these and other great articles, you can subscribe to our RSS feed.
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
