This post is part of a series on Essential Skills for New Parents: How yoga practices can help you parent with peace and presence.
My wise friend told me that having a baby was like adding another full-time job to your household. As a new parent, you will have to do more with less energy. You are going to be tired, overwhelmed. How are you going to manage?
The yogic practice of energy management can help. This practice is about containing the energy that you have. To do this, you must become aware of where energy may be leaking and plug up those leaks.
Common Energy Leaks
Eating Habits
If you are eating while doing other things, your body may not be able to digest properly and you may not be getting all the nutrients you could be from your food.
Speech
Believe it or not speech is an expenditure of energy. If you are expending energy in unhelpful uses of speech such as complaining or gossip, it may not be the best use of your energy.
Attention
Even where you place your attention may be taking undue amounts of energy. Scrolling and searching the web, asking your mind to review countless images per second takes energy. So does being in an over- stimulating environment. Asking your brain to mange the simultaneous inputs of noise, clutter, lights, sounds all takes energy. Consider whether that is the best use. This is why babies actually shut down when there is too much stimulation. Many people think they have fallen asleep, but they have actually shut down to shut out the overstimulation.
Emotions
Emotional reactions actually take energy. Are you engaging in conversations, or watching things on the news or television that are eliciting strong emotional reactions. This is an expenditure of your precious limited energy. Is it worth it?
Habits
Habits can include social obligations and tasks that may be best to put aside for now while your baby or small child is needing so much of your energy. This is a time where it might be prudent to decline some social invitations and to give yourself some grace on common social obligations for a while. This could be things like buying gifts, sending cards, making muffins for a new neighbour, some social visits and gatherings. Just evaluate all of your expectations and obligations and see which ones would serve you to let go of for a while.
As a person with a chronic illness, I had to especially mindful of these seemingly small things. Added up though, it can make a big difference to my well-being. Conserving small amounts of energy can be the difference between surviving the day or being able to enjoy it a little. It can make the difference between being grumpy and impatient all day and being centered and calm. It is worth looking at this things and examining where you may decide to save your precious energy for yourself. If saving a little bit of energy by not watching the news or engaging in gossip can make you a calmer and happier person then that is a benefit to yourself, your family and the world, even if it disappoints someone initially to not have someone to gossip and complain with.
The best way to really evaluate your energy expenditures is to keep a diary of your activities and emotions throughout the day. Look at it objectively. This can be very illuminating.
In the next post, I will share an important skill for staying centered when negative emotions are rising.
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This post is part of a series:
Essential Skills for New Parents: How yoga practices can help you parent with peace and presence.
I am working on a book on the same topic to compile all the practices with further information and make it available as an easy reference for new and expecting parents. Please subscribe to my newsletter in the blue box below if you want to be sure to get the rest of the posts.
LOVE AND PEACE
Check out my other reflections. I write about living with chronic illness, healing, the beauty of slowing down, parenting and creative projects.
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Nicole St. Arnaud is a twice-certified Yoga Instructor in Iyengar and Yasodhara Yoga, a Reiki Master, a Heartmath certified practitioner, and a parent. She has been living with chronic illness and exploring the healing journey for over 20 years.
Nicole is a regular contributor for theMighty.com , and shares insights and reflections from her healing journey on aslowerkindoflife.com.
