The Mindful Mother

The first of its kind, this book will show mothers-to-be how to create an authentic practice of mindfulness to prepare for pregnancy, labour, birth and the early parenting years. Full of gems and aha moments using simple and helpful tools and practices to keep you connected to yourself while looking after your family' Nadia Narain, Head of Pregnancy Yoga, Triyoga, London 'This is a book I highly recommend to mothers and mothers-to-be. It is like an insightful friend who understands deeply what becoming and being a mother really means' Janet Balaskas, Founder of Active Birth Chunilal offers unparalleled support along with clear and simple meditation and self-development practices based on Buddhist and yogic philosophy to help cultivate a daily practice of mindfulness, which will enable you to be more present during pregnancy, birth and beyond. Having a child has the potential to awaken your heart and bring infinite joy, wonder and delight into your life. Yet when you become a mother, alongside immense delight and excitement, you may also feel a great deal of internal turmoil and confusion, as well as a change or lack of sense of identity. Organised into clear, thematic sections, this book can be dipped into for emergency inspiration or read from cover to cover. It explores common mothering dilemmas with honesty and integrity, helping you to keep both feet firmly on the ground. Issues include: adjusting to having minimal personal time and space, coping with in-laws, managing the balance between work and home, finding stimulation within an often tedious home routine, and dissolving doubts and comparisons with other seemingly happy families. Most of all, The Mindful Mother teaches you to understand your true nature, so your mind is working with you, rather than against you.

From hormones to stretch marks, labor pains to diaper changes, motherhood is an adventure like none other. The rapid changes in your body, your lifestyle, and your very identity call for a certain mental agility. Mindfulness can help you meet the challenge and approach every experience with your new baby with open eyes and an open heart. Easy ten-minute meditation exercises and yoga poses throughout this book will help you cultivate greater flexibility and mindful awareness during pregnancy, childbirth, and your baby's first year. Whenever you have a moment to spare, open Mindful Motherhood and discover a skill that will help you find balance and fulfillment during those times when you feel most overwhelmed. Co-published with the Institute of Noetic Sciences (IONS). Mindful Motherhood contains what so many other parenting books omit:: the consoling information that each mother has the ability to know, deep within, how to care for her child. Mindful Motherhood is a gem. -Christiane Northrup, MD, author of Women's Bodies, Women's Wisdom Wise, soothing, and helpful-this is really good stuff for new mothers. -Jack Kornfield, author of The Wise Heart

Strengthening your own foundation is one of the very best beginnings you can give your child. In The Mindful Mom-to-Be, doula and pregnancy coach Lori Bregman guides you in your journey toward motherhood by empowering you to find what works best for you and your baby. In addition to concrete, prescriptive health information, including nutritional advice, natural remedies, developmental milestones, and techniques for labor, she offers simple and enjoyable spiritual and emotional exercises to help you prepare for motherhood. As Lori explains, you're not just birthing a baby; you're birthing yourself as a mom, too. With month-by-month advice, comprehensive checklists, and customizable birth plans, this is your indispensible, holistic companion for pregnancy, birth, and beyond.

In Buddha Mom, Jacqueline Kramer beautifully illuminates the ways in which motherhood can be woven with the spiritual life. Drawing upon her twenty years as a practicing Buddhist, as well as many other wisdom traditions from around the world, she offers powerful insights into cultivating a more spiritual attitude toward parenting. In chapters, guided by central Buddhist themes-Simplicity, Nurturance, Joyful Service, Unconditional Love-Kramer's personal experience of pregnancy, birth, and then raising her daughter to adulthood serves as a guide to integrating the roles of parent and spiritual being. A celebration of all that motherhood can be, Buddha Mom presents an inspiring vision of child rearing.

Feel empowered to become the mother you want to be. From birth to your baby's first steps, this soothing book will support you to open your heart to the highs and lows of mothering and adjust to your new role. It offers everyday meditations and visualisations, postnatal yoga, natural remedies, and nutritional advice to help you care for yourself with the same love and commitment you give your precious baby. As a new mum, you may secretly wonder: "Am I up to the job?" With pressure on mums to parent perfectly and "bounce back" effortlessly and unsupported, all amid sleep deprivation, and brain, body, and relationship changes, it's no surprise women struggle. You are not alone. Compassionate, evidence-based psychological ideas from clinical psychologist and mum, Dr Caroline Boyd, will ground you amid the storms, enhancing everyday connections to you, your baby, and the world around you both. "Compassionate and powerful tools are delivered in such an accessible way. I hope this book finds its way into the hands of every new mum." - Anna Mathur, Sunday Times bestselling author of Know Your Worth and Mind over Mother. This holistic book will help you understand: - Significant brain, body, and identity shifts during this transformation known as "matrescence". - The intense, emotional rollercoaster of this first year - explaining what can shape your ideas of the "good" mum, and why experiencing feelings such as anger and anxiety doesn't make you a "bad" mother. - Why it's important to learn to self-soothe, with practical psychological strategies to help you nurture yourself, as well as soothe your baby. - Why couple dynamics shift with the arrival of a baby, and ways to stay connected. - How to use your values to guide your decision-making, making choices that fit for your family. Caroline offers gentle, realistic advice with a focus on mindful compassion - supporting you to develop a kinder relationship with yourself. She offers natural remedies to help manage interrupted sleep and strong emotions, healthy foods to boost energy and improve low mood, affirmations to soothe and support, and mini-meditations and longer meditative practices to calm and centre you and to share with your baby. Enjoy gentle, targeted yoga, with your baby and alone, to ease the aches and pains of early motherhood and build strength and flexibility. Use mindful massage to bond with your baby and nourish your body. Mindful New Mum will help you find more head and heart space - empowering you to become the mum you want to be.

A “Mom Must-Read”—Parents A National Parenting Product Award (NAPPA) Winner Easy-to-follow practices that will help moms find quick, daily opportunities to reset and refocus with mindfulness. And don’t miss Don’t Forget to Breathe for more 5-minute mindfulness. Moms can feel as if they are sprinting through life, crashing onto the pillow at day’s end only to start again the next morning. In Breathe, Mama, Breathe, psychotherapist Shonda Moralis outlines the benefits of daily meditation and shows moms how to do it—in just five minutes! Plus, she shares over 60 “mindful breaks” that will help moms tune into their own well-being (along with everyone else’s): Eat a mindful breakfast—with no phone, TV, or newspaper! Cuddle your child and take three deep breaths together. Give yourself a mindful-mommy high five—because moms can use positive reinforcement, too. Every mom—whether caring for a new baby, an overscheduled grade-schooler, or an angsty teen—can become a mindful mama!

Enjoy a natural, positive, stress-free pregnancy. Trimester by trimester, this beautiful book gives you safe yoga, meditation, natural remedies, nutrition, and hypnobirthing techniques to match your stage of pregnancy. Encouraging, practical advice from midwife and positive birth expert, Tracy Donegan, will help you to understand your body, relish your pregnancy, and bond with your growing baby. Troubleshoot pregnancy aches and pains with appropriate exercises, quell morning sickness with natural remedies and food, bond with your baby through meditation and movement, and prepare your body and mind safely and healthily for childbirth using strengthening exercises and hypnobirthing techniques. Feel empowered to nurture and give birth to your baby with strength and confidence, and embrace your life as a new mum. "A must-read for all parents who want to create a healthier, more joyful, more peaceful world." - Deepak Chopra, MD

"Mindful Thoughts for Mothers is the perfect present for mums everywhere. It explores a mother’s world, helping the reader to hold a sense of the ‘bigger picture’ while being present in the day-to-day." - Mental Health Foundation "The opposite of hardline, hectoring motherhood manuals, this charmingly illustrated hardback takes a gentle meander through the motherhood journey." - Waitrose Weekend Motherhood is one of the most wonderful and powerful experiences we can have in life. As the early years of our children’s lives unfold, we will undoubtedly experience the joys they bring, but will also encounter the stress and demands that appear daily and nightly on the parenting path. Using mindfulness practice to manage these demands we can become more present and meet life with awareness, in the moment. These reflections on motherhood will help you find greater self-understanding and enable you to navigate a mindful path along this exciting journey.