From the moment I announced that I was pregnant, it seemed like everyone asked questions about my progress. How far along are you? Do you know if you are having a boy or a girl? When is your due date? How are you feeling? Does the baby move a lot? Have you chosen a name? Is the nursery ready? You get the idea…there were a lot of questions. Then came the best day of my life – the day we welcomed our sweet little baby into the world. So many people were asking to see pictures, everyone wanted to meet him, family members were driving in from other provinces to see us and all of my girlfriends wanted a chance to snuggle with my sweet little boy. A few weeks after getting home, it seemed a lot quieter around our house. My husband was back to work, family had traveled back home and my baby was sleeping most of the day. It was just my son and I at home all day by ourselves. After years of working in a busy office full-time outside the home, it took a while to get used to being at home all day with my little buddy. I loved being at home with him and I wouldn’t do anything different if I could go back and do it again but there were some days that I felt really lonely. Becoming a mom is an amazing experience but there are times when adjusting to your new family can cause some new mom loneliness.
You hear of friends going on adventurous vacations, funny stories from work and perhaps even night out events that you’ve missed out on. Although you are in an amazing new stage of your life, it’s normal to sometimes feel left out of your circle of friends. Don’t get me wrong, I love every moment of snuggling with my son and I wouldn’t trade those moments for anything but there are times that you feel the need for interactions with other friends and mothers who are at the same stage in life that you are. It is nice to have a friend to share stories with that they can relate to (like your baby holding his head up for the first time or learning to wave bye-bye). This is where a mom & baby group can help.
Overcoming New Mom Loneliness:
When my son was a few month old, I started thinking about joining a mom & baby group. A friend and I did some research and couldn’t find a group in our city so we decided to start one of our own. Actually, when I first started this Moms & Munchkins blog, it was my intention to share all of our tips for starting a mom & baby group with other mothers out there that wanted to start a group in their own city. You can read more about this in the Starting a Moms Group section.
Experiencing some new mom loneliness is completely normal. Don’t be afraid to talk to your spouse, parent or even best friend about it. Having feelings of loneliness doesn’t mean that you aren’t fulfilled with your beautiful new child. It can simply mean that you’re looking for some new interaction with other new mothers and babies. Interacting with other mothers and babies can be a great experience for both you and your little one.
Did you ever experience the feelings of new mom loneliness? Did you join a mom & baby group or fun classes designed for mothers and babies? What advice do you have for new mothers who are feeling a bit lonely at home? Let us know in the comments below.
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Disclosure: I am part of the Fisher-Price Play Ambassador program with Mom Central Canada and I receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinions on this blog are my own.
Thanks for sharing Cheryl. Due to my son being a premie and it was a bad year for Rotovirius my pediatrician had us on house arrest until he was a few months old. I nearly went crazy.
Hi Tennille! That must have been really hard! Thankfully I had my mother & best friend close by so even when I didn’t have the energy to go out, they could come over to my place. Having that adult interaction certainly helped get through those first few months when everything is new & somewhat terrifying. I sure do miss the baby days though!