Hooray for spring! It feels like a long winter – just us?! And with the lighter days, comes the clock change. Twice a year when the clocks change, we’re inundated with questions and parents asking what they can do to manage the change. Although the spring clock change can play havoc with our bodies (an increase in heart attacks and strokes the day after this happen), it can actually really help you out if you have a little one who likes waking before 5am! So, if you happen to have an early riser, you don’t need to take any action at all. Simply stick to your little one’s current body clock – t ..read more

Firstly let’s consider why this happens… As your baby grows it puts pressure on the lower back and pelvis – your spine adjusts its shape to accommodate your new centre of gravity, whilst the pressure placed on your pelvis can cause stiffness and misalignment of its joints. These areas of your body often hold stress whether you are pregnant or not. However, in pregnancy the impact can be compounded by the effect of hormones which soften your tissues. This makes them more able to accommodate your growing baby and prepare for birth.   Managing and relieving back and/or pelvic pain Regardless ..read more

New or expectant parent? Look again at your life insurance! (Or consider adding it to your to-do list.) Becoming a parent is a busy time for all involved, and when anticipating the arrival of a cherished new addition to your family, likely the last thing on your mind is life insurance. However, things happen, and while it is understandable that at the moment your lives are filled with happiness, it is also vital that the doubt in the back of your mind as to what would happen if the worst were to come to pass is replaced with peace of mind. Here at Thing’s Happen, we can help with that. A new a ..read more

It’s likely that you heard about the four-month sleep regression, way before your little one got to four months, as it’s something that buzzes around all the coffee meet ups and baby groups! The four-month sleep regression actually happens anywhere between 12-16 weeks and it’s when your little one develops sleep cycles. Prior to the four month sleep regression, little ones generally sleep in 50% light (REM or dream) sleep and 50% deep sleep and they drift in between those stages of sleep fairly easily. When a little one goes through the four-month sleep regression, they are more likely to wake ..read more

Reflux in babies can be a really stressful issue to navigate. Not only are you worried about your baby’s well-being, there’s nothing more disheartening than seeing them spit up what looks like an entire feed. While they say not to cry over spilt milk, sometimes you just can’t help yourself.     Reflux is common in many young babies because the muscles at the very top of their stomach aren’t strong enough yet to hold down milk. Reflux or spitting up will usually go away with age. As their digestive system matures, they start to sit up and can sit for longer periods, which means t ..read more

Black Maternal Mental Health Week is a focus period for ensuring the equity and inequalities Black mothers face are recognised and addressed. This year’s theme is Equity and each day we will be exploring the following areas: Equity and Inequality, Stigma, Trauma and Loss, Feeding and Wellbeing and Community and Culture. At the beginning of my maternal journey, I realised it wasn’t going to be a walk in the park. I felt the burden of unrealistic expectations from my community, from society, and from myself. Before long, my mental health was impacted. The Sandra Igwe I once knew started to fade ..read more

The time soon comes when baby needs more than just milk. It’s time to introduce solids! There are two main approaches to this, usually described as Baby-led weaning and Parent-led weaning. Which you choose is up to you – and baby. Some babies take more easily to one or the other. And each approach needs slightly different purchases. Our friends over at Good Play Guide have got just the advice!   What is baby-led weaning? Baby-led weaning means mess as baby explores the taste and texture of food! Your first line of defence will be good bibs! Choose ones with long sleev ..read more

A birth plan is basically a rough guide for your preferences throughout labour, birth & the immediate post-natal period. It’s a document that lets your care team know how best to support you during birth.   The first thing I always tell clients when we begin talking about birth plans is that the best made plans are always flexible. Making a birth plan does not set your intention for birth in stone.   Birth is unpredictable; the ability to ‘go with the flow’ is definitely an essential. No one knows how birth will feel to them, or how they will feel in the moment. No one can say wi ..read more

Affirmations are one of my favourite ‘hypnobirthing tools’. They are super straightforward, completely free and can have a really powerful effect on your subconscious. The subconscious is the part of our brain which stores everything it thinks might be important and uses that to keep us safe.   Think of affirmations as simply cheerleading for yourself – sounds a lot less woo-woo! They can be statements that you say out loud, or that you listen to, read or write or a combination of these things.   So how do they work? Affirmations work because of something called Hebb’s Law. This is t ..read more

Before having children not many people think about the contents of their handbag.  I certainly didn’t until it became evident that bags are a source of great fascination to increasingly curious toddlers.  If your bag is anything like mine, it will be crammed full of many useful, but many more not so useful items!  Everything get’s tossed out of the bag, and anything that looks vaguely interesting goes straight into the mouth for some investigation. So, what could be in your handbag that could be a hazard to young children? Coins – They are shiny, and they make a great clinking n ..read more