Now....be sure and order Belleruth's CDs for Pregnancy and Childbirth so you may continue to enjoy a wonderfully, comfortable pregnancy and birth! Let guided imagery keep working for you!
.........and CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Fertility leads to pregnancy leads to childbirth. So we are that far, but where is the guided imagery for coping with new motherhood and, if necessary, post-partum depression? Stress Relief and Healthful Sleep seem to help a little, but with her demanding schedule, my wife could use something more targeted, something that would help her if she only had 5 or 10 minutes to listen, something to boost her confidence as a new mother and help her through this final, and largest, step to becoming a complete mother.

You know, Jonas, that's a terrific idea. I wonder why it never occurred to me!! Bringing a new baby into a household (especially for the first time) is probably one of the most massive changes - joyful and stressful - a human can experience. With or without postpartum anything. Anybody else think this would be a good topic for guided imagery? Tawk to me, people!!
BR

Belleruth, I think guided imagery for new parents would be a wonderful idea. I work with parents of young children and I think many new parents are surprised by how difficult it can be to care for a newborn.

Forwarded this story and discussion to a young friend who gave birth (prematurely) to twins recently (we gifted her with your Healthy Pregnancy & Successful cd when she conceived following IVF). She is struggling with ppd as well. This is her response:"Thank you for turning me on to Bellruth's website, (in addition to her guided imagery CDs). I have enjoyed perusing the discussions on various topics. She is so great! I really appreciate her comment about absurd expectations on new moms (from a discussion in May 09 newsletter). It's true that many of the books- especially the attachment parenting ones, make it seem like you can really screw up your child if you so much as allow them to cry for a moment. Thanks Bellruth! This is next to impossible with twins. I've been feeling guilty as I nurse one baby and the other one is crying that I might be permanently scarring the other by not responding immediately to his/her needs."
She added that a specific short imagery would be wonderful for both her and her husband who are pressed with so many demands on their time (small business owners, new parenting, community activists/volunteers, et al).

Absolutely! A guide imagery for new parents would be wonderful. A good friend introduced me to your work and gave me a gift of your pregnancy and birth guided imagery, which greatly helped me to relax and think positively through what the medical community termed a "high risk" pregnancy. After three miscarriages and a long struggling with fertility issues and an IVF treatment, I am now a new mother to three month old b/g twins. They were born a month early had had to spend 15 days in the NICU hooked up to IVs and wires to monitor their vitals. Suffice it to say this got us off to a rough start emotionally as parents. As wonderful and exciting as it is to have our babies home with us now, it is also the most overwhelming life change I have ever experienced. When combined with postpartum hormones and winter, it can feel scary at times. I now spend most of my day and night nursing and caring for two babies- sometimes without leaving the house for days.

I greatly appreciate your comments in the "postpartum-blues- absurd expectations on new moms". As you mention so many of the resources available to new parents (especially the attachment parenting sources) make it seem as though you can easily miss the boat in successfully bonding with your baby and moreover do permanent psychological damage to your child if you so much as allow them to cry for an instant. I can't tell you how guilty it makes me feel when I am nursing one baby and unable to console the other one if he/ she is crying.
In addition, as many of our friends, and now my husband and I are discovering, becoming parents can be incredibly stressful on a relationship. It would be wonderful to have a guided imagery to help us all through this huge life transition.

Thanks for writing. Yes, the baby care norms have run amok, I swear. I knew nothing about this until first my daughter and then my daughter-in-law - two very grounded, humorous, capable people - had their first babies and started getting bombarded by the attachment people on one side, and the sleep people on the other. It was hard enough without any of that. It was intimidating and terrifying - just as you say, you feel the stakes are so high and you could wreak havoc on a little unformed psyche if you didn't do things just so - which is absurd, of course. We couldn't have evolved as a species if there weren't GREAT room for error, crankiness and parental sloppiness!! Thank heavens!
I remember with my first baby, days were just a blur, the only thing defining them was the same baby clothes reappearing in the laundry basket to be folded (sort of). I longed for the ability to just brush my teeth uninterrupted! And with twins, I can only imaagine. And you do feel like "real" life is passing you by and this will never end. And you just want to smack the people who say "Oh, it all goes by so fast..."!!! That's only true in retrospect!
Hmmm.... I'll ponder this. And you're right, you'd need short meditations... maybe something for during feedings too...
Thanks for all the great input.