4 Life Changes I am Making to Better My Health

Since becoming a mom, I’ve been exceptional at prioritizing everyone else’s health and well being. But I’m pretty terrible about my own.

I’ve never been a vitamin or supplement person; I don’t tolerate multivitamins. When I was pregnant, and oversight at the hospital left me unaware that I had very low ferritin until I was almost due. Since having my daughter, my joints have ached more, and my body has felt stiff. It’s like having a toddler ages you or something… (complete sarcasm here. It most certainly DOES age a person).

At 1.5 years postpartum, I just don’t feel great, you know? I often feel exhausted and sluggish (thanks to a toddler that suffers night terrors) and I’ve most definitely put on weight (stress, binge eating and postpartum hormones, hello!). So I’ve started to make some small changes to slowly but surely get myself physically and mentally in a better frame of mind.

OPENING UP

I promised myself, that when I became a mother I was going to be transparent about my journey and how it has changed my life. Finally getting the chance to be a mom was a dream I feared I may never get the chance to experience. Becoming a mom has not been the easiest road for me. Traumatic labour, 5 months of colic, postpartum anxiety and a child who suffers severe night terrors, have all made a significant impact on my well being. I’ve found that opening up about some of these things not only helps me feel not so alone, but it let’s other new mothers they aren’t either. When I wrote this post about surviving colic, I continued to get emails for months. Recently this post about postpartum isolation helped me really articulate just how lonely it can be.

As a young person, I was often dismissed for being ‘sensitive’ or needing to toughen up. As an adult, I am grateful that my sensitivity has given me compassion, clarity, and insight into mental wellbeing. I hope that be continuing to open up about my highs and lows as a blogger, mother, and woman, I can be stronger within myself.

SIPPING AWAY

If you’ve been following me on Instagram, you may know that I’ve been juicing. Yeah I know, I’m one of those people who bought a juicer, but I’m determined not to let it gather dust on the countertop. I remember years ago I had a client who couldn’t absorb vitamins and was iron deficient. Her doctor had suggested she start juicing as a way to get more her vitamins and minerals and help against inflammation. The story always stuck with me, and this year I decided to give it a try. I treated myself to the Breville Cold Foundation so that I could have freshly made juice for up to 72 hours in the fridge. I can definitely tell the difference when I haven’t had juice for a couple of days; My skin looks more congested, I feel foggier and I have even less energy.

SWEET SUPPLEMENTATION

Now, as mentioned, I’ve never been a supplement person. However, these two have proven to help for several family and friends, so I decided to give them a try.

Firstly Magnesium has a long list of health benefits that research has shown, but there were a few specifics that interested me the most. Namely the supposed effects on anxiety, PMS, insomnia and inflammation. Magnesium also has research behind it to show that it can possibly lower blood pressure, work in aid to prevent diabetes as well as support calcium absorption. For me, Magnesium seems to allow me to sleep sounder, but not heavier. I feel less achy in the morning when I’ve woken up.

Secondly, I’ve added collagen back into my routine! I started adding this to my diet last year after I had Everly. I’d heard some pretty amazing things about how it can help skin and hair growth. Since I was postpartum my hormones were doing all sorts of things to me that I was trying to regulate. Taking collagen is also known to help with joint pain, something that I seem to have an abundance of these days chasing after a 1.5-year-old. I’ve chosen Sproos* this time around. I love how many options they provide including marine, grass fed, unflavoured and flavoured. You can purchase in single servings for on the go, or an economical tub. Sproos is a Canadian company, and they even have collagen bars now for smart snacking!

I LIKE TO MOVE IT MOVE IT

Okay so here’s the deal, I DON’T like to move it move it. I know, shocker. I’m envious of all you running lovers, gym rats and warrior posing, namaste chanting yoga freaks. I just don’t love sweating. I’m hot blooded as it is, and generally, am always in a perpetual state of sweat (Gross, I know). I don’t love that burn in my chest, nor do I get that adrenaline rush people get natural highs from when working out.

So why am I even mentioning it? Because I have a very active toddler, and I’m tired of not having the energy for her. So I’ve ordered some mini and resistance bands and created a little at home workout playlist on YouTube and I’m going to start moving this frumpy rump of mine. Or at least I’m going to try – watch this space!

What simple (or big) changes have you made to better your health? Let’s get a discussion in the comments below.

DISCLAIMER: I am not a health professional (clearly!) and any supplements, diet changes or exercise should be consulted with a doctor.