Understanding Anxiety in Pregnancy and After Birth: Causes, Impact, and Practical Strategies
- cm1619
- Sep 18
- 5 min read
Pregnancy and parenthood are often described as some of the happiest times in life. But alongside the excitement and anticipation, many people (this can affect parent's equally) experience something that's spoken about less often — anxiety in pregnancy and postnatal anxiety.
If you’ve noticed intrusive thoughts, persistent worries, or a constant feeling of unease during pregnancy or after giving birth, you’re not alone. Perinatal anxiety (anxiety during pregnancy and the first year after birth) is surprisingly common, yet it's often overshadowed by conversations around postnatal depression.
In this article, we’ll explore what causes anxiety during pregnancy and after birth, the impact it can have on you and your baby, and some gentle, practical strategies you can start using today.
What Causes Anxiety in Pregnancy and After Birth?
There isn’t a single cause of perinatal anxiety — it’s usually a mix of physical, emotional, and situational factors. Some of the most common triggers include:
Hormonal changes: During pregnancy and after birth, fluctuations in hormones like estrogen and progesterone can have a powerful effect on our mood and ability to regulate our emotions, which can leave you feeling more anxious.
Sleep deprivation: Pregnancy can make it harder to sleep, and once the baby arrives, broken nights become the norm. Lack of rest affects the nervous system and makes it harder to problem solve and manage emotions.
Worries about your baby’s health and safety: Many new or expectant parents find themselves consumed with “what if” thoughts — worrying about miscarriage, complications, or whether the baby is feeding and developing properly.
The pressure to be a ‘perfect’ parent: Social media, cultural expectations, and our own inner critics can make us feel like we should be coping better, doing more, or feeling happier than we actually are.
Previous mental health challenges or trauma: Those who have experienced anxiety, depression, difficult life events or toxic parenting in the past may be more likely to experience perinatal anxiety.
Understanding these causes is the first step. It helps you to see that what you’re experiencing isn’t your fault — it’s a natural and very human response to a major life transition.
The Impact of Perinatal and Postnatal Anxiety
Living with anxiety at anytime can feel overwhelming and this becomes even harder during pregnancy or after giving birth. It can affect both your day-to-day life and your overall sense of wellbeing.
Common effects include:
Constant worrying – thoughts that run through your head over and over, again and are often worst-case scenarios.
Physical symptoms – racing heart, shallow breathing, restlessness, or feeling tense in your body.
Difficulty sleeping – even when the baby is resting, you may find your mind won’t switch off.
Reduced enjoyment – feeling too anxious to relax or bond fully with your baby. ( This can also impact breast feeding)
Strained relationships – anxiety can sometimes make it harder to connect with your partner, family, or friends. or older children. Long-term, if left unsupported, perinatal anxiety can also affect your confidence as a parent and your emotional connection with your baby. But the good news is: support and strategies can make a huge difference.
5 Practical Strategies to Help Manage Anxiety in Pregnancy and After Birth
While everyone's experience of anxiety is unique, there are some gentle tools that many new and expectant parents may find helpful. The key is to approach them with self-compassion, not pressure. You don’t need to “fix” yourself overnight — small steps can create big changes over time.
1. Breathwork: Calming Your Nervous System
When you feel anxious, your body often moves into a “fight or flight” state — shallow breathing, rapid heartbeat, and muscle tension. Practising breathwork is one of the fastest ways to signal safety back to your nervous system.
Try this simple exercise:
Place one hand on your chest and the other on your belly.
Inhale gently through your nose for a count of four, allowing your belly to rise.
Exhale slowly through your mouth for a count of six.
Repeat for a few minutes.
This technique helps regulate your body’s stress response, grounding you in the present moment. Many people find it especially useful before bed, during moments of overwhelm, or even when feeding their baby.
2. Journaling: Releasing and Reframing Your Thoughts
Anxiety thrives on unspoken, unprocessed worries. Writing your thoughts down can be a great way to get them out of your head and begin to challenge and change them.
Some journaling prompts for pregnancy and postnatal anxiety include:
Where are my thoughts today?
Is this worry what I'm actually seeing in my life or is it my anxiety speaking?
If a friend shared this worry with me, how would I respond ?
Journaling doesn’t need to take long — even five minutes can offer a release or insight. Over time, you may start to see patterns in your worries, which makes them easier to work through and reframe.
3. New Parent Groups: Finding Connection and Support
One of the most isolating parts of anxiety is feeling like you’re the only one struggling. Joining a new parent group (whether in person or online) can be incredibly reassuring.
Sharing your experiences with other parents who “get it” helps to:
Normalise what you’re going through.
Break down the loneliness that anxiety often creates.
Learn practical tips from others in a similar stage.
Build lasting friendships and a support network.
Even if it feels daunting at first, many people find that just being in a space with other parents helps reduce their anxiety and increases their confidence.
4. Gentle Movement: Releasing Tension and Restoring Calm
When anxiety gets a hold, it often gets “stuck” in the body as tension, restlessness, or tightness in the chest. Gentle movement — such as walking, stretching, or postnatal yoga — can help release this physical stress and boost feel-good hormones like endorphins.
Even 10 minutes of light activity can:
Clear your head
Relax tight muscles
Improve your sleep quality
Help you reconnect with your body in a kind, supportive way
You don’t need to try to do long workouts; small, consistent sessions of gentle movement can be really effective.
5. Mindful Moments: Creating Small Pockets of Calm
With a newborn or busy pregnancy schedule, it may feel impossible to “find time” for yourself. But we can take back control of our mind and ease anxiety when we create short, pauses in the day. This could look like:
Enjoying a cup of tea without distractions
Stepping outside to feel the air on your face
Stopping to notice three things you can see, three you can touch, and three you can hear,(a grounding technique)
These tiny moments of mindfulness don’t need to take more than a minute or two, yet they can bring your mind back into the present and reduce the spiral of anxious thoughts.
When to Seek Further Support
While self-help strategies can be powerful, sometimes anxiety in pregnancy or after birth can feel too big to manage alone. If you find that your worries are constant, overwhelming, or stopping you from enjoying daily life, it’s important to reach out for professional help.
Options include:
Speaking with your GP, midwife, or health visitor
Working with a therapist or coach who specialises in anxiety.
Exploring therapeutic approaches like EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques), hypnotherapy, or mindfulness
Getting support isn’t a sign of weakness — it’s a powerful step towards being the confident parent you know you can be.
Final Thoughts
Experiencing anxiety in pregnancy or after birth doesn’t mean you’re doing it wrong. It means you’re human, finding your way through one of the biggest life changes there is. With the right tools, and support, you can enjoy this period of your life and feel confident in your skills as a parent.
If you’d like to explore deeper support for anxiety during pregnancy or motherhood, I offer 1:1 coaching, EFT, and hypnotherapy to help you rewire anxious thoughts and find calm confidence. Get in touch today to learn more.
Chris.
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