PREPARING
FOR PREGNANCY………BREAK
THOSE BAD HABITS NOW!
Now, as you are preparing
for motherhood, is a good
time to look at some of your
habits and consider how they
may affect you and your new
baby. Some of your habits
may be harmless, or even beneficial,
such as a daily walk after
dinner. Others however may
be potentially harmful to
you and to those around you.
By definition, a habit is
“a recurrent, often
unconscious pattern of behavior
that is acquired through frequent
repetition.” While habits
are often described with a
negative connotation, they
are only truly “bad”
if they place yourself or
those around you in harm’s
way.
Before going any further,
take some time to jot down
5-10 of your habits. Use the
definition of a habit as a
guideline and write down patterns
of behavior that you do frequently.
Then put some thought into
dividing them into “good”
and “bad” habits.
If they are “good”
meaning they pose no harm
to you or those around you,
circle them. These habits
you can keep. If they are
“bad” star them.
These habits you will need
to look at seriously. Here
are some questions to help
you determine whether your
habits are “good”
or “bad”.
• How
do you feel after engaging
in the habit?
• Where are you and
who’s around you when
you engage in the habit?
• Who do you talk to
about the habit?
• What are the possible
negative outcomes associated
with the habit?
• How would others describe
the habit?
Your answers to these questions
should guide you in whether
you think you need to do anything
to make some changes. For
example, if you feel guilty
after engaging in the behavior
chances are it is a “bad
habit”.
Once you have determined which
of your habits are “bad”,
you need to consider whether
you are ready to break them.
If so, put a check next to
them. Some guiding questions
for this exercise are as follows:
• What
makes this behavior a habit?
• What effect does this
habit have on your life presently?
• What changes will
you have to make to break
this habit?
• What would it mean
for you to not break this
habit?
• How will this habit
affect your new baby?
At this point, you should
have 2-5 habits you are looking
at to either break or perhaps
alter to better fit your new
lifestyle as a mother. Work
on one habit at a time; trying
to break too many simultaneously
could lead to frustration
and failure to break any of
them. Start with what you
consider to be your most dangerous
habit as this will be the
one that you feel you should
break immediately.
Take a clean sheet of paper
and write a short paragraph
describing this behavior.
Include what the behavior
is, who you do it with, where
you do it, when you do it,
and how often you do it. This
might be harder than you think.
Remember, the definition of
a habit includes the term
“unconscious”.
If you are having difficulty
with this exercise, you might
want to take a week to observe
your own behavior. Keep a
notebook with you and jot
down the: who, what, where
and when every time you engage
in your habit. For example,
if smoking is your habit,
stick a piece of paper in
your pack of cigarettes and
every time you go for a smoke
jot down whom you are with,
where you are, and the time
of day. Over a week’s
time, you should begin to
see a pattern emerge.
After writing your paragraph
and identifying your pattern
you will need to determine
what action steps you have
to take in order to break
the habit. Here are some questions
to consider:
• What
has worked for you in the
past?
• Who could support
you in breaking this habit?
• Who would be willing
to hold you accountable?
• What other options
are available to you?
Your action steps will be
your own, as only you can
determine what will be effective.
It is imperative to remember
that you do not have to do
this alone. Support, guidance,
and accountability will help
ensure you follow through
on your action steps and reach
your final goal of breaking
your “bad” habits.
Also, keep in mind your decisions,
good or bad, no longer only
affect you. You need to consider
what is best for you and your
baby.
Below are some sample action
steps to help you get going:
• Join
a support group (OA, AA, NA,
Smokenders, etc).
• Reward yourself each
day you succeed in not engaging
in your “bad”
habit.
• Keep a daily journal.
• Find somebody who
will hold you accountable
for breaking your habit.
• Write notes congratulating
yourself for breaking your
habit and stick them on the
bathroom mirror.
• See a doctor (if your
habit includes medical intervention)?
The decision to make life
changes is an important one.
Breaking habits you have engaged
in for long periods of time
is not easy. The first step
however, making a sincere
commitment to change, is the
hardest. Once you have accomplished
that, the rest will flow naturally.
Good luck and remember to
have fun, this is after all
about making life better for
you and those you love!
