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With all the excitement and focus on your pregnancy and new baby, the physical and emotional components of postpartum recovery can come as a surprise. The fatigue, soreness, headaches, fever, bleeding, and other aches and pains that come after delivery and nine months of growing a baby may be confusing or even alarm you. However, it’s normal for big changes (and some discomfort) to happen during this time of healing and transition for the mother....

After six months of exclusive breast and/or bottle-feeding your little one, the thought of introducing solid foods can be exhilarating. Finally, your baby can experience the creamy texture of avocado and the sour taste of a lemon. It can be tricky to determine what food you want to be their first, but there might not be a gentler or filling starter food around than a simple bowl of oatmeal. Oatmeal is recommended for babies around 6 months of age....

A yoga blanket provides yogis with extra grip and gentle support—it can even replace a yoga block in certain poses. While standard blankets can slip around on the mat, a yoga blanket is the perfect hybrid of strong and soft—staying put as you move all the way from tadasana to savasana. Yoga blankets have multiple uses; they are used to achieve proper alignment, promote easy body movement, and keep you comfortable under challenging poses,” says William Toro, NASM-CPT, certified personal trainer and physiotherapist....

Basketball is a popular sport among both kids and adults, and with good reason. It’s fun to practice on your own or play with others, and it’s also a great form of exercise as both a cardio and strengthening workout. Choosing the right basketball for your needs and preferences is important to a successful start with the sport or taking your game to the next level. We researched dozens of basketballs and evaluated them for material, price, grip, and size....

With a shift towards less meat consumption and more plant-based eating, the need for high-quality, plant-based meat alternatives has increased exponentially. There are many nutritious options on the market made from whole food ingredients such as vegetables, legumes, whole grains, nuts, and seeds. It’s important to look at the protein being used in the meat alternative. Some meat-alternative products contain added proteins like pea or soy protein, making them more comparable to meat in protein content, but these are typically more processed than those made with whole food, plant-based ingredients (like vegetables, nuts, legumes and grains) and can come with additional additives and fillers....

Eating a nutritious, well-balanced diet can provide you with most of the vitamins and nutrients that you need for optimal health. But if you follow a restrictive diet, are unable to eat certain foods, are taking certain medications, have a diagnosed deficiency or medical condition, or are going through certain life stages, such as older adulthood, you may especially benefit from a vitamin supplement. Women who may become pregnant, are pregnant, or are breastfeeding also have increased vitamin needs....

If you suffer from social anxiety disorder (SAD) you might have experienced what is known as a panic attack. A panic attack is a period of intense fear accompanied by symptoms such as a racing heart, shortness of breath or dizziness. When people who have SAD experience panic attacks they are generally triggered by social or performance situations. To understand why panic happens, it is helpful to look at the cyclical pattern of events that leads to panic....

Ophidiophobia or ophiophobia is the fear of snakes. It is possibly the most common subcategory of herpetophobia, the fear of reptiles. Some researchers believe phobias related to reptiles (and snakes specifically) may be evolutionary, developed by our ancestors as a survival mechanism. However, this theory would not explain why snake phobias are relatively common, while fears of predatory animals, such as tigers, are rare. Some research shows that while the tendency to pay close attention to snakes may be evolutionary, the actual fear is learned rather than innate....

Neo-Freudian psychologists were thinkers who agreed with many of the fundamental tenets of Freud’s psychoanalytic theory but changed and adapted the approach to incorporate their own beliefs, ideas, and opinions. Psychologist Sigmund Freud proposed many ideas that were highly controversial, but he also attracted a number of followers. Many of these thinkers agreed with Freud’s concept of the unconscious mind and the importance of early childhood. There were, however, a number of points that other scholars disagreed with or directly rejected....

Critique papers require students to conduct a critical analysis of another piece of writing, often a book, journal article, or essay. No matter what your major is, you will probably be expected to write a critique paper at some point. For psychology students, critiquing a professional paper is a great way to learn more about psychology articles, writing, and the research process itself. Students will analyze how researchers conduct experiments, interpret results, and discuss the impact of the results....

Want a secret weapon for relieving stress? Getting organized. Putting in the effort of getting organized, especially if this organization extends to multiple areas of your life, can help reduce stress levels long term by requiring less last-minute scrambling in a variety of everyday situations. It can also feel empowering, so you experience new situations as “exciting” rather than “stressful,” which can minimize the strength and duration of your stress response, or keep it from getting triggered in the first place....

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) occurs when the brain is injured or damaged by an outside force such as a blow to the head or a gunshot. TBIs can occur as a closed head injury in which the skull and brain remain intact, like what is seen among professional athletes such as football players, or as a penetrating head injury in which an object penetrates the skull and brain. Traumatic brain injuries can be caused by motor vehicle accidents, falls, other accidents, and firearms....

All children need vitamins and minerals in order to be healthy and develop adequately. Vitamin D, iron, calcium, fluoride, and a multitude of other vitamins and minerals must be a regular part of every child’s diet, or they will eventually develop a deficiency. There is typically no need for children eating a well-balanced diet to take a vitamin supplement. When a Child ​May Need to Take Vitamins According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, healthy children should be able to get the recommended daily allowances of all of the vitamins and minerals they need from their diet....

A platonic relationship is one in which two people share a close bond but do not have a sexual relationship. They may even feel love for each other, referred to as platonic love. This concept originates in the ideas of the ancient philosopher Plato, from whose name the term is derived. Plato believed that platonic love could bring people closer to a divine ideal. However, the modern use of ‘platonic relationship’ or ‘platonic love’ is focused on the idea of people being close friends....

“Social distancing” is a term used to describe infection control actions taken by public health officials to stop or slow down the spread of a highly contagious disease. Most recently, it’s been referenced by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as one of the best strategies in preventing the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19). Key Takeaways On March 15, 2020, the CDC urged that any large gatherings be canceled or postponed at this time....

If you’ve had a miscarriage, your healthcare provider will likely advise that you wait a short period before having sex again. In most cases, it is safe to resume having sex once your miscarriage-related bleeding has stopped (usually one to two weeks). Others recommend waiting six weeks or more, especially if there were complications or if the pregnancy was more advanced. This article explains why it’s important to avoid sex when you are healing from a miscarriage and how to cope with a pregnancy loss....

The World Health Organization released a guideline for providers on how they can best screen and treat mental health conditions during the perinatal period. Key Takeaways A new guideline released by the WHO establishes best practices for healthcare providers to screen and treat mental health issues in perinatal patients.10%-20% of women will experience a mental health condition in the time just before and after their child is born.The guideline will especially help support pregnant individuals in lower-income countries where mental health issues during and after pregnancy are more prevalent....

Our mission is to support you through all the stages of pregnancy and parenthood. Welcome to Verywell Family, an award-winning resource for reliable, compassionate, and up-to-date information on the pregnancy and parenting topics that matter most to you. We are dedicated to empowering you with the best answers to your most pressing questions when it comes to fertility and planning for pregnancy, caring for a newborn, and navigating the complex stages of parenting....

What Is the Autonomic Nervous System? The autonomic nervous system is a network of nerves that regulates unconscious body processes. The autonomic system is the part of the peripheral nervous system responsible for regulating involuntary body functions, such as heartbeat, blood flow, breathing, and digestion. Because of this, the autonomic nervous system is also sometimes known by another name: the involuntary nervous system This system is further divided into three branches: the sympathetic system, the parasympathetic system, and the enteric nervous system....

Biparietal diameter (BPD) is one of many measurements that are taken during ultrasound procedures in pregnancy. It is a measurement of the diameter of a developing baby’s skull, from one parietal bone to the other. Biparietal diameter is used to estimate fetal weight and gestational age. Every human has two parietal bones—one on the left side of the skull and one on the right side. Each parietal bone looks like a curved plate that has two surfaces and four sides....