Postpartum depression and disordered eating with Stefani Reinold

Stefani Reinold is a board-certified psychiatrist, maternal mental health expert, and founder of Not the Typical Mom, a lifestyle brand dedicated to helping moms escape the stereotypes, abolish mother guilt, and live their own authentic mom lives. Out of her own suffering from postpartum depression and losing herself as a new mother, she decided to ditch the details of life and reconnect with the most important part of herself, and now helps fellow mothers do the same! Whether through individual patient care, online coaching, podcasting or public speaking, Stefani encourages mothers to escape the stereotypes, find their hearts, and embrace their real selves so that they can kill it in life, love and business.

 

Episode highlights

 

Dr. Reinold’s own experience of motherhood including her experience of postpartum depression. The loss of control over our body and life during pregnancy including weight gain during pregnancy. Dr. Reinold’s intention not to put on extra weight after her daughter was born and her history with an eating disorder earlier in life. Exhaustion during pregnancy.

 

Dr. Reinold treated motherhood as another thing on her to-do list. Dr. Reinold shares the fact there is not textbook case of postpartum depression. Dr. Reinold’s change of relationship with her husband once her daughter arrived. Dr. Reinold’s experience of feeling like she was a failure as a mother. The link between Dr. Reinold’s feelings of body dissatisfaction and postpartum depression. The lack of social support in Dr. Reinold’s life. The fact that nobody validated Dr. Reinold’s struggles - passing it off as “normal” rather than validating her lived experience - the emotional pain. The first month postpartum is the most challenging but the 3-6 month period tends to be the most challenging time. As high achieving women, we tend to think that we can do it all on our own. Saying I am here to support you opens the door to someone who may be struggling - it opens the crack which slowly over time starts to open up where people can state their needs to that person. Who to reach out to if you feel you need support. What is “normal” - better phrase is “some of your symptoms make perfect sense”. Diet culture and how new mothers can be particularly vulnerable to this. Time limit - if don’t get body back within certain time period. Dieting in postpartum is not normal - we should be eating a lot more in postpartum. Dr. Reinold disliked the feeling of hunger and tried to restrict her calories and this impacted her breastfeeding her daughter. This then fed her feelings of failure - guilt and shame. Dieting was seen as something Dr. Reinold could do “right”. How Dr. Reinold placed so much worth on what she looked like - now she looks at what is healthy weight for her body. Studies looking at mental health and correlation with body dysmorphia. Shift in body aesthetics and hormonal changes - interesting time for many women. Shame that we can’t appreciate all of the changes in the postpartum period. We are grieving loss of our former body and our pre-baby life that we had. We can consider what our new body has been able to give us which our pre-baby life was not able to give us. The extent to which pregnancy depletes us physically, mentally and emotionally. Becoming a mother is the most profound change you will ever go through in life but it is not given the acknowledgement it deserves.

Favourite food: Pizza!

Relevant links

 

Dr. Reinold’s website: http://www.stefanireinoldmd.com/

 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/stefanireinoldmd

 

Instagram: www.instagram.com/stefanireinoldmd

 

Twitter: www.twitter.com/stefanireinold

 

Book: Let Your Heart Out: How to Escape Your Thoughts and Reconnect with the Most Important Part of Yourself

 

Study looking at The Role of body image in prenatal and postpartum depression

 

You can contact Alison at https://www.alisonbarker.com/connect/ or follow her on Instagram www.instagram.com/alison_barker_

and find details of her nutrition packages at www.alisonbarker.com/work-with-me-3

Please also join the Facebook group Mothering the Mother where we continue the conversation: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1885649551488600/