Bundles of joy and sleeplessness, stress hormones in traffic jams...
If you're expecting your first child then you can expect massive changes to your life... no one really prepares you! I've written about becoming new parents in today's Sun newspaper - have given lots of tips for coping with your precious - but demanding - bundle of joy.
Maybe you've been up all night with your new arrival [that bundle of joy has no idea what 'night time' means] and don't know how you're going to face the day? Sleep deprivation is a killer on this scale. Got to let certain things slip (like the ironing) and grab those cat naps when your baby's asleep.
Over to men under stress when stuck in a traffic jam ... research has found men's stress hormone quadruples when stuck in jams so in today's Express I've written about managing these situations better. It's no wonder so many couples argue in the car with so much stress hormone flying around.
In fact if the hubby and I are going to have any stress it's usually in the car!
Completely hooked already on Downton Abbey and Spooks - provided light relief while I'm trying to finish the book off....argh, deadline's looming. But why are Downton rushing through their storylines? The young soldier committed suicide for too quickly and Mary and Matthew have barely had time to reestablish chemistry.
TODAY’S TIP: back to car-stress: spend a few minutes preparing for a car journey and you might spare a few minutes of argument hell.
People skip the basics that you should know where you’re going, know how to get there, keep a bottle of water with you [a glass of water has been shown by research to boost your brain power], obviously fuel yourself with something to snack on its long journey.
If the arguing gets really bad agree to take turns in future car trips deciding which one of you takes the lead and the other doesn't know morph into a backseat driver.
This tactic works a treat - many couples have reported that once they take turns deciding which route to take, what speed to drive, what music to have on the radio car, etc., journeys are much smoother.
Happy travels, Pam x