There has never been a better time to take care of your own mental health. Here are my 5 tips on looking after your wellbeing.

This month, I’m welcoming Gemma Sandwell, Chief Happiness Officer and Mindfulness Teacher at The Happiness Branch to my blog to share tips on how to feel calmer during uncertain times.

I can honestly say the more sleep deprived I am, the higher my anxiety and stress levels are. I know it is impossible to never experience stress, but I find parenting so much harder when I am struggling with anxiety. This month I’m excited to introduce Gemma Sandwell from the Happiness Branch who shares her hacks on how to feel less anxious when you are sleep deprived.

You may not know this about me, but when I was 15 I was diagnosed with M.E., “Myalgic Encephalomyelitis”, which can also be referred to as Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS). It seems rather apt to share my journey with you, being that it is M.E. Awareness week.

I remember when I was pregnant with Oliver our first born, I met a mum to be in our ante natal classes who said she was having her placenta encapsulated after giving birth. To be honest the first thing I thought was “What the hell is that”? She then went on to tell me and I just thought it was really weird, why would she want to do that? After giving birth she sent the group a photo of her “Placenta Smoothie”, which at the time seemed really disgusting. I mean why would she do this to herself?

Never did I think after a relatively straightforward pregnancy first time around, would I  experience anxiety during my second one. I was not aware that the experience of having a pre term baby affected me at all, until I hit the second trimester in this subsequent pregnancy.

One of the most common struggles I hear from sleep deprived mums is that they feel low, fed up and anxious. When parents share this with me, I know exactly how they feel because I have been there when my former sleep thief was constantly waking every night for nearly a year.