The Depleted Mother… is Exhaustion Normal?
If you’ve ever experienced true exhaustion you’ll be familiar with the feeling of being utterly depleted. This state is far too common for mothers with young children, but it is not normal.
Having lived in a state of exhaustion and fatigue for some years when my children were young, I know how easy it is to accept it. I had no idea that mothering could feel any different, I was totally unaware of how depleted my body had become.
I’ve just looked up definitions for exhaustion, out of curiosity to see if anyone has been able to effectively articulate what exhaustion feels like. “Extreme tiredness”, doesn’t quite do it for me, I could be extremely tired today if I didn’t sleep well last night. “Fatigue” is getting closer, it has a more chronic state feel to the meaning. I looked at the definition for fatigue and found “a reduction in the efficiency of a muscle or organ after prolonged activity,” this was my experience, not that I realised it at the time.
Today I’m passionate about helping parents and parents-to-be. I share my story in the hope that others don’t get as depleted as I did, and parents will enjoy health and normal amounts of energy.
Although I ate mostly healthy food and very little junk food, the extent of my knowledge was eat whole food, I didn’t understand the extent to which my body would give me clues about my nutritional needs. I put up with blood sugar dips, headaches, coldsores, extremely dry cracked skin, digestive pain, irregular bowels, getting puffed walking up stairs, hair loss, and foggy brain, culminating in fibromyalgia, before I truly began to understand that I was extremely depleted.
My first clue was when I visited the general practitioner for one of my children, the GP suggested I get some routine blood tests. My ferritin was 2 ug/L! Lab range is 20-380 and optimal range is 55 - 150 ug/L. Ferritin is a measure of iron stores, and given that iron helps carry oxygen to our cells… no wonder I was exhausted.
That wasn’t my only discovery, I followed this up by seeing holistic practitioners and eventually retraining as a clinical nutritionist. I discovered my blood glucose was unregulated, my thyroid was low functioning, my vitamin D, selenium and magnesium were depleted. I had a dysbiosis and my brain was trying to tell my adrenals to stop pumping out cortisol and catecholamines (adrenaline and noradrenaline) in an attempt to provide energy. Pumping out more adrenal hormones was not the answer, I needed to balance my life and give my cells what they needed to function well.
And that’s my message to parents…
listen to your body
get healthy before conceiving
reach out for holistic professional advice
give your cells what they need for optimal function
Don’t put up with seemingly unrelated signs and symptoms, uncover the drivers of depletion, and nurture your body to healthy balance.
Parenting is demanding, as parents we give so much of ourselves to our children and the daily routines to nurture and nourish them, but often we forget to nourish ourselves too. Or we just don’t know what it takes to nourish ourselves well.
Modern living in industrial lands is depleting. Although for many people food is abundant, the quality in processed products is lacking, soils are depleted, and we need to be intentional about the nutritonal value of what we eat, not just the taste and enjoyment.
The common pressured lifestyles and modern exposures to chemicals and overstimulating environments require greater amounts of nutrients for your cells to function well. All in all, although our modern world brings many health advantages, we need to adapt and account for the modern-day stressors, so we can thrive rather than survive.
Check out my Healthy Habits blog for ideas on bringing healthy balance into your life… https://regenhealth.nz/blog/healthy-habits
For some this may be easier than for others. Genetic predisposition and genetic variations called SNPs may mean that your body needs more help than your friend’s body does. Health and environmental history also impact what’s going on for you now. Don’t look to others for answers, look to your body’s signs, symptoms and sensations; don’t jump on a diet bandwagon, chances are what’s right for your friend or your favourite influencer, isn’t right for you.
If you want to discuss options feel free to contact me 0274164339, I will return your call asap.
Depletion can be hard to dig your way out of. Be kind to yourself, be consistent, you don’t have to explain yourself to everyone, but do reach out for help.
For those of you wanting help, you can book for an in-person or online consultation here…