Moving Mindfully After Miscarriage

Pregnancy loss can be a traumatic event, and it’s not uncommon to have difficult thoughts and feelings during and after a loss. Following a loss, it’s important to take steps toward looking after your physical and mental well-being. One potential way forward is through the use of physical activity or exercise which has been shown to benefit both physical and mental wellbeing following miscarriage.                               

How can exercise help?

Participation in exercise has favourable effects on physical and mental health, such as improved cardiovascular function (how well your heart and lungs work to supply adequate blood throughout the body), changes in metabolism (chemical processes that are continuously taking place inside your body that help sustain normal functioning), weight management, improved body image, perceived health status, mood and reduced symptoms of depression.                                             

What type of exercise should I do?

Often the best type of exercise for you, is the one that brings you joy and that you feel comfortable doing at the given time, so it’s important to find a modality that you like. Types of exercise such as walking, yoga, stretching, cycling have been reported to improve emotional regulation following a stressful event, and in some cases, reduce symptoms of stress, anxiety, and depression.       

Beyond regulating emotions and symptoms of depression and anxiety, exercise may have benefits to your mental and physical well-being. Moderate-intensity physical activity (a useful guide to follow: if you can talk, but can’t sing, that is an indication of moderate-intensity exercise) has been associated with improved fertility for all women. For women who are overweight or obese, vigorous-intensity exercise (can’t sing or talk while exercising), has been associated with improved fertility. However, if exercising feels a little daunting after a miscarriage, know that this is completely understandable. so any way you can move your body, will produce a benefit.                                                                                                                         

 Who should I contact if I am unsure on where to start?                                                     

 If you aren’t sure how to start exercising after a miscarriage, get in touch with an accredited exercise physiologist (AEP). AEP’s are exercise specialists who have completed a minimum of 4 years university training which has equipped them with the knowledge and clinical skills to enable them to provide tailored exercise programs that consider the individual’s medical history, exercise history, complications associated with pregnancy, the trauma associated with the loss and other important psychosocial considerations.                                                                       

You can easily find an Accredited exercise physiologist in your local area by looking at the online directory provided by Exercise and Sports Science Australia (ESSA). This online directory can be found at www.essa.org.au                                                               

                                                                                                                      

 Credit authorship of the blog to both  Dr Tegan Hartmann and Dr Danielle Girard