We’ve all been there, say it’s 4:47am. The newborn you wished and prayed for waking up every hour and a half or so. Body aching from feedings. Mind spinning with anxiety about whether baby is getting enough milk, whether you’re doing everything wrong, whether you’'ll ever feel like yourself again.

Yoga (not the asana, or physical practice, but the deep study of the other limbs of the practice) teaches you a few things that can be incredible tools and resources for motherhood. There are practices meditators have utilized for lifetimes before us that can help you exactly in these hardest of moments.

The Practice (It's Almost Too Simple)

Here's the whole thing:

Minute One: Notice Your Body Just as you are. If you can, even if you’re holding baby, place hands nearest your chest and belly. Don’t try to change your breathing, just notice it. Arrive in real time, not the worry in your mind. Say it to yourself. I’m in the room. I’m in the rocking chair. My feet are on the floor in warm socks. My baby is safe. I am ok. Just noticing. Not judging. Not trying to fix.

Minute Two: Follow Your Breath Counting in: one. Out: two. In: three. Out: four. Up to ten, then starting over. Your fear and stress will creep back in. You will want to wake your partner or move or remember something from your to-do list. Allow it, let it go. Count again. One. Two. Three.

Minute Three: Expand Your Awareness Stop counting and just sit there. Remain aware of your breathing. Aware of the quiet house. Aware of my small body you hold. Aware of the ache in your chest that is part physical exhaustion, part overwhelming love, part grief for your old life.

Let it all be there without trying to change it.

Why This Works

Maybe pre-pregnancy you’d tried meditation apps before. I'd tried guided meditations that were 10, 15, 20 minutes long. But in the fog of new motherhood, I couldn't focus that long. My mind was too scattered. My body was too uncomfortable. I'd get frustrated and quit.

Three minutes was doable. Even on the worst days, I could find three minutes.

But more than that, this time isn’t asking you to feel better. It doesn’t promise to make my anxiety disappear or your exhaustion vanish. It just gives you three minutes to be present with yourself exactly as you are.

And somehow, that can be everything.

What It Actually Changed For Me

I'm not going to tell you this practice made motherhood easy. It didn't. I still had hard days (hard weeks, honestly). I still felt overwhelmed and under-qualified for this whole parenting thing. But this practice gave me something crucial: a pause button.

Before, when my baby cried, I spiraled immediately. What's wrong? Why can't I fix it? I'm failing at this. Everyone else is better at this than me.

After incorporating these three-minute check-ins, I could catch myself. I could breathe. I could create a tiny space between what was happening and my panic response. It didn't eliminate the stress. But it kept me from drowning in it.

When I Actually Did It

The beauty of three minutes is you can fit it anywhere:

During the first morning feeding, before anyone else was awake
In the car before going into the grocery store
While my baby did tummy time (she didn't need me hovering)
Right after I put her down for a nap (instead of immediately rushing to do dishes)
At night when I woke up anxious and couldn't fall back asleep

I didn't do it perfectly. Some days I forgot entirely. Some days I tried and couldn't focus at all. But I kept coming back to it because it was the only tool that felt manageable.

The Sobriety Connection

I got sober around the same time I became a mother (talk about doing life on hard mode). And this practice became even more essential. Because in sobriety, you lose your primary coping mechanism. You can't numb out anymore. You have to feel everything. And in early motherhood, there's a LOT to feel.

These three minutes became my anchor. When I wanted to escape, to check out, to reach for something to make the discomfort stop, I'd sit. Three minutes. Just breathing. Just being present with the hard stuff.

It sounds too simple to matter. But it taught me something crucial: I could survive discomfort. I didn't have to run from it or fix it or numb it. I could just... be with it.

How to Try It Yourself

You don't need anything special. No app, no cushion, no perfect environment.

Set a timer for three minutes
Put one hand on your chest, one on your belly
Notice your breath for one minute
Count your breaths for one minute
Just sit and be aware for one minute

That's it.

Your mind will wander. You'll think about your to-do list. You'll wonder if you're doing it right. You might feel uncomfortable or restless or emotional. All of that is completely normal. The practice isn't about having a perfect three minutes. It's about showing up for three minutes exactly as you are.

The Unexpected Gift

Here's what I didn't expect: this practice didn't just help me survive the hard moments. It helped me actually experience the good ones too. Because when you practice being present with discomfort, you also get better at being present with joy. With the weight of your baby on your chest. With the miracle of their tiny fingers. With the fierce love that sometimes feels too big for your body.

Three minutes taught me how to be here. Not in my anxiety about the future or my regrets about the past. Just here. And on the hardest days of early motherhood and early sobriety, being here was the only way through.

Want more simple, realistic practices for the chaos of new motherhood? I've created meditation guides specifically designed for exhausted, overwhelmed moms who need tools that actually fit into real life—no perfection required.