Your pregnancy is a special time in your life. It’s also a unique experience. Even if you have other children or plan to have more in the future, your journey is likely to be different. Those months leading up to birth will be filled with wonderful moments of connection between you, your child, and the world around you.
One of the most beautiful ways to preserve some of these moments is by journaling the journey. Taking a few minutes each day to express your thoughts, feelings, and experiences in writing creates a lasting memoir of your pregnancy. It can also serve a variety of practical purposes to support your wellness and maintain an accurate record of the details.
Let’s take a look at some of the reasons to keep a pregnancy journal and what elements you could consider including in your record of this wonderful and challenging time.
Self-care is important during pregnancy. There are a lot of aspects of the experience that will be difficult, and it is vital for the well-being of you and your baby to take time for your personal needs. Indeed, it’s worth having a variety of tools at your disposal to manage the challenging aspects. Journaling is a positive way to approach this.
For a start, it operates as time entirely focused on you and your experience. It can be a meditative practice, helping you achieve some inner peace by focusing on the act of writing and not on the pressures around you. You may also find it is a conduit for catharsis. Writing a journal allows you to direct the strains and stresses of your experience in a positive direction, perhaps helping you to understand the root of these better. In fact, you may find it improves your mood as well as relieves stress to journal before big events such as doctor’s appointments.
You may even find it useful to combine your journaling with other forms of self-care. Take your journal on a gentle walk surrounded by nature. Throw some bath bombs into the tub and journal as you soak. However, if you’re going to take this route, you need to be mindful of the potential for some bath bomb ingredients to clog your drains. Make sure you’re using a drain filter or mesh to catch solid materials so your relaxing journaling time isn’t undone by additional stresses.
Your pregnancy is likely to include various ups and downs. This is natural and it’s part of what makes the experience rich and rewarding. Yes, there will be times it is frustrating and difficult, but there are supporters and professionals on your side to help you to navigate these.
The thing is, having accurate data about the day-to-day aspects of your pregnancy can mean your team of supporters is better able to help you. You may not think it when you’re writing, but the information about how you’re feeling — both physically and mentally — can give all kinds of clues to the resources and care you need. As such, it’s important to take the time to be honest and detailed in your pregnancy journaling.
Make a point of taking your journal along to any obstetrics appointments or meetings with your midwife or doula. You don’t necessarily have to give them free rein over your journal, but it can be a useful and accurate guide to talking about anything you’ve felt or experienced since your last appointment. You can also highlight anything you’re concerned about so you can address it during your sessions with professionals.
One of the most beautiful ways a journal can be of practical use is in helping you to understand your mental wellness. You’ll find this is especially the case if you’re utilizing your writing to direct the emotions you’re feeling or the uncomfortable thoughts you may occasionally have. Just as it can be a cathartic tool for venting, it is a useful method to review any potential signs of mental health concern.
In many ways, your journal is most useful in this regard from a cumulative perspective. There may be times you find what you’re writing to be an immediate flag for your current mental wellness. But when you re-read your previous entries over a longer period of time, you can often identify the direction your state of mind is headed. Indeed, you may also spot trends in peaks and troughs that help you to better prepare for and manage difficult symptoms. As such, it’s worth reviewing your journal once every couple of weeks to get a good overview of the situation.
You can also find your journal is a vital tool in the weeks immediately before and after the birth of your child. Perinatal depression is a common and treatable condition but it can also be difficult to spot in the early stages. Indeed, just because you haven’t experienced it from a previous pregnancy, this doesn’t mean you won’t be confronted by it this time, and vice-versa. Your journal can offer excellent clues to the presence of more subtle symptoms like anxiety, difficulty concentrating, and not enjoying certain activities. This allows you to seek the help you need as early as possible.
Perhaps the most beautiful outcome of journaling your pregnancy is it creates a valuable memento of the experience. Each moment of your day has the potential to be affected by every small aspect of nurturing your baby to term. You may well hold onto your memories of the big aspects, like feeling their first kick or discovering their gender during a sonogram. But often, the small but precious moments get lost to time. A journal can help you retain and relive these.
Think of it not just as a diary you’re keeping for yourself, but a story you can revisit with your child when they’re old enough to be curious about your time carrying them. Indeed, this can help you to create an artifact that is rich and fascinating in this regard. Rather than simply using a diary format, treat each entry like a chapter in the book of your child’s development. Include dialogue from conversations you’ve had or dreams you’ve woken from.
You’ll find producing this journal can be more fun and impactful if you adopt a variety of techniques. Paste in your sonogram images after key appointments. Include some sketches or cartoons about your visits to the doctor and the development of your bump. Produce “recipes” for any unusual cravings you’ve had. Don’t be afraid to go multimedia with your journal. It will make for an interesting and moving record for you to look back on.
Your pregnancy is a beautiful and unique period in your life, even though it can be difficult at times. Capturing the experience in a journal can be a rewarding and practical addition to those nine months. It helps support and monitor your various wellness needs while acting as a tool to provide self-care. Not to mention it is a valuable artifact in the journey of your child’s prenatal life.
While it can serve a serious purpose, make sure to have some fun with the process so you and your growing family get the most positive impact from it
Frankie Wallace is a freelance writer from the Pacific Northwest. She writes about a variety of topics and spends her free time gardening.