How bad is it for the baby when your stressed?

Question

I'm stressed every day. If i'm not upset and crying, i'm upset and yelling. Everyone tells me I need to calm down because it's "not good for the baby" what exactly happens to the baby when i'm always stressed?? How do I not let things bother me? I don't want to hurt my baby but it's so hard to stay relaxed with everything in my life right now.

Answer 1

In all truth, the stress is more dangerous to you, than directly to the baby. The mother's body does an incredible job of isolating the baby for the mother. You need to get your emotions in check, though, because a heartattack will hurt the baby. Also, long term stress can eventually begin to affect the child. Speak to your doctor about your emotional issues.

Answer 2

Well let me shorten my story for you. I was about 3 months pregnant and things got really bady. I won't go into depth about what happened. But my finace cheated on me while pregnant and got his bosses daughter pregnant. Yeah drama... I was extremely depressed. I'm nowhere close to family because I'm in the military. On top of that I had really bad morning sickness and at the end of it all I gained 17 pounds and went 40 weeks and 5 days. I had a healthy full term baby girl weighing 7 pounds 5 ounces, 20 1/2 inches. I spoke to someone while pregnant and I was put on anti depressants. Not everyone likes that fact of a pregnant women taking it, but it does not harm the baby. I took myself off the meds after 1 1/2 months. I just didn't want to become dependent. It really depends. Some women get so depressed they harm themselves and others are how I was and just depressed. I didn't want to talk to anyone and barley wanted to live at the time. I thought my world was over when it had only just begun. I am a happy, proud single mom and things work out. No matter what your stressed about. I was stressed the entire thing and everything turned out fine. Avoid it if you can... Keep your head up. It's natural to be upset and mean half of your pregnancy. That's part of the fun lol. It's the only time you really have an excuse to be that way! Good luck and congrats on the baby.

I know you didn't say you were depressed, I just wanted to tell you that being stressed doesn't always turn out to be bad.

~Proud Mom of a 5 1/2 month old baby girl~

Answer 3

The stress is the worst for you. Your body amazingly protects your baby. Unless you stop eating and taking care of yourself due to the stress your baby should come through this OK. I was stressed from day one with my third and now he is a wonderful 2 yr dare devil.

As for the people that say calm down because it's "not good for the baby" - well, that just set me off more. What was I, just a walking baby factory? Didn't I count and need to be helped?

Now, take a few deep breaths and keep reading. I'm not going to say calm down, because sometimes it's impossible. I don't know what is going on in your life, but between that and your pregnancy (with all of its hormones) it can get overwhelming.

I have 3 wonderful children, but I became pregnant with my third while taking care of my terminal mother and having a 7 yr boy and 1 yr girl. It was just too much. I worked with my OB and we started with B-complex vitamins (it also helped with morning sickness). The did help, but not enough. I did end up on an anti-anxiety/depression pill. I did not like taking pills, but it was the best for me. I still had days where I was crying or yelling, but it was not every day and overall I felt better and was able to deal with things better. My son was born a hefty 8lbs 13 oz (ouch).

As long as you keep taking care of yourself (eating, fluids, sleep) you will not hurt your baby. Please remember - you are NOT ALONE and do not have to go through this alone.

Take care - you and your baby will do great!

Answer 4

I was stressy during my pregnancies too. Some of it is due to the hormones, some of it is due to the fact that you feel like crap. But adding extra stress on TOP of that is a recipe for high blood pressure.

Its bad for the baby because stress=high blood pressure=problems like pre-eclampsia (sp?).

Inlist the help of those who keep telling you to calm down so that you can have a day of "stress-free-mommy" every now and again. Spend the day in your pajamas watching Judge Judy, take a warm bath for several hours, go get a message....

Answer 5

There is a recent article about too much stress from mother can cause low birth weight in the baby, which can lead to other problems. Stress is not going to be good for YOUR body.

Answer 6

they tell u its not good for teh baby but theres no proof you being stressed causes any problems or miscarriages which is what some will tell you. its all BS really. that baby is very well protected and theres no reason to think that you being upset is going to do anything. my dr even told me that. however its not good for you or your blood pressure so its best to try to breath through the times ur upset and remove urself from whatever is causing it

Answer 7

You could lose the baby. It's not good to be stressed and behaving the way you are describing. I used to get really bad back spasms, almost like contractions, and the placenta can detach from the uterus wall and if that happens there is nothing that can be done to save the baby except get it out of you and hope it survives, if it hasn't died from lack of oxygen that is.

Answer 8

Hormonal changes may be partly responsible for the mood swings experienced during pregnancy. These mood swings are common and normal, so a pregnant woman should not be overly concerned about them. However, she should keep in mind that mood swings may make it more difficult for her to cope with stress.

In addition, many pregnant women and their partners worry about the health of their unborn baby, their ability to cope with labor and delivery and their ability to become good parents. Added financial responsibilities are another common source of stress, especially if the parents anticipate a reduction in income—whether brief or long-term—after the baby is born. All of these worries can be magnified if the pregnancy is high-risk, in which the pregnant woman must significantly reduce her activity and, possibly, leave her job early.

A number of studies have suggested that very high levels of stress may increase the risk of preterm labor and low birthweight. A 1999 study at the University of California Los Angeles School of Medicine found that women who reported high levels of stress at 18 to 20 weeks of pregnancy were more likely to have high levels of a hormone called corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) in their blood. This and other studies have found a potential link between high levels of CRH and preterm labor.

CRH, which is produced by the brain and the placenta, is closely tied to labor. It prompts the body to release chemicals called prostaglandins, which trigger uterine contractions. CRH also is the first hormone our brains secrete when we are under stress. Researchers continue to explore the possibility that women who experience high levels of stress early in pregnancy have elevated levels of CRH that set their placental clock for early delivery.

Another recent study suggests that the timing of stress during pregnancy may influence pregnancy outcomes.

Researchers at the University of California at Irvine found that the earlier in pregnancy a woman experienced a very stressful event (in this study an earthquake), the earlier she was likely to deliver. The researchers speculate that women become less sensitive to stress as pregnancy progresses, possibly helping protect the baby from adverse effects of stress.

Babies who are born prematurely are often low birthweight. However, studies suggest that babies of women who suffer from high levels of stress and anxiety are more likely to be born low birthweight even when born at full term. Some stress-related hormones (such as norepinephrine) may constrict blood flow to the placenta, so the baby may not receive the nutrients and oxygen it needs for optimal growth.



here's a link for coping with stress
http://womenshealth.about.com/cs/pregnancy/a/mispregstress.htm

Answer 9

You could lose the baby. It's not good to be stressed

Answer 10

You're probably feeling stressed because your hormones are raging due to your changing body. If you're worried (which I assume you are) ask your doctor what you can do about it.