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Day 154 of 280 · 22 weeks

A wellbeing plan

Last reviewed · 3 min read · 8 sources · Plain-text version

Twenty-two weeks. The NHS suggests a wellbeing plan this week. Today you write yours on one page: what helps, what doesn't, and who you'd call.

Size this week
about the size of a sweet potato
Length this week
around 27.8 cm from head to toe
A woman in her forties with a small bump, in a loose denim shirt, writing on a single sheet of paper at a desk by a window, a mug of tea and a pair of walking shoes nearby, soft morning light.

Twenty-two weeks. The NHS's suggestion for this week isn't a test or a purchase. It's a page about you.

Your baby

A single sweet potato on a plain white ceramic plate, soft daylight.

Around now your baby is around 27.8cm long from head to toe, about the size of a sweet potato (NHS). Their lungs are developing, and they practise breathing in the womb (NHS).

Your body

The NHS asks you to prioritise your mental and physical wellbeing this week, and to consider making a wellbeing plan (NHS). It's on the list for a reason. Depression and anxiety can happen during pregnancy as well as after birth, and they can affect both your health and your child's (NICHD). Anxiety in pregnancy is as common as depression (AAP).

The physical half counts too. The NHS keeps the target at 150 minutes of exercise a week, starting with a 10-minute brisk walk a day if you're not active yet (NHS). And for pregnant women, physical activity reduces the risk of postpartum depression (ODPHP).

Try today

  1. The wellbeing plan

    Time: 15 minutes

    1. Take one sheet of paper. At the top, write "what helps": a walk, a friend, a bath, an early night, whatever is true for you.

    2. Under it, write "what doesn't": the scrolling, the skipped lunch, the people who leave you worse.

    3. Write "who I'd call": two people you trust, and your midwife or doctor.

    4. At the bottom, write the numbers: call or text 988, the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, and call or text 1-833-TLC-MAMA (1-833-852-6262), the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline (CDC). The hotline is free, confidential, open 24 hours a day, and answers in English, Spanish and more than 60 other languages (NICHD).

    5. Put the page somewhere you'll see it, and show it to one person.

    Make it work:

    Keep the page short enough to read on a bad day. One side, big writing.

Watch for

  • Normal

    flat days and short tempers.

    Call your provider

    if you lose interest in things you used to enjoy, or feel guilty about failing as a parent before you've begun; these are warning signs, and they can be treated (AAP).

  • Normal

    worrying about money, housing, or your relationship.

    Call your provider

    or midwife to talk it through; the NHS lists exactly these worries as ones to raise (NHS).

  • Normal

    a hard week.

    Call 911

    , or call or text 988 or 1-833-TLC-MAMA, for thoughts about harming yourself or your baby (CDC).

For you

None of this means something is wrong. A wellbeing plan is like a spare key: you write it on a good day so it's there on a bad one. These feelings "are not something you caused by doing or not doing something," the AAP says (AAP).

If you're the partner: write one for yourself. Emerging research suggests 1 in 10 new fathers may experience depression during or after pregnancy (OWH). Your page can be shorter. It still needs a name and a number on it.

Sources

This guide is general education that summarizes published research and guidance from groups like the American Academy of Pediatrics, the CDC, and the WHO. It isn’t medical advice, and every child develops on their own timeline. Your pediatrician knows your child; if something feels wrong, call them. In an emergency, call 911.

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Add your due date to a free Chorevia household, and every morning until the birth the day's note arrives in the app and by email: what's forming, what your body is doing, one thing to try, what to watch for, and a word for you.

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