Things we ignore as a new mom
Health :
Congratulations on the arrival of your li’l bundle of joy! You have been waiting for this day since long! Now that the newborn is there in your arms, in your home, the baby will get everybody’s undivided attention love and care. The new mother of course is busy all day-all night figuring out what on earth just happened to her and her body seems so different from what it used to be for the past couple of months. The remaining time she is wondering why the baby is crying, being fussy, peeing, pooping so often and then the new loop of her life - feeding, changing diapers, nap time and over again. While going through all this mothers tend to ignore their health. Taking a healthy diet that comprises of all the nutrients especially required at this phase when you have just delivered a small life out of your body surely becomes difficult. Not that you can’t eat what you want, but who has the time unless and until there’s a dedicated butler around. This is why during this ‘confinement’ period the mother needs someone by her side. Mother-in-law, her own mother or even a maid for help (No am not comparing mom’s to maid’s , I am just emphasizing the dire need situation that it is ). Interestingly, even if there is a helping hand around, managing a mom’s schedule along with the baby (whose eating, sleeping and pooping has no pattern to it) becomes difficult. You tend to gulp food and not ‘eat’, for the baby might wake up, or the baby needs a diaper change and is crying on the top of his/her vocal chords. Sometimes, we forget to take supplements that have been prescribed by the doctor like iron, calcium. And when you have to wake up after every 20-40 minutes during the night to feed the baby and the hunger is killing you, then you end up having things like chocolate, brownie, chips, biscuits (what else can you get at 2 in night, and 3, and 4?) which are not at all healthy options and addinng lots of calories too. Time to take the meals also gets disturbed and forget about the “eat small and after 2 hours” formula to keep that stomach easy!
Asking Out for Help :
A new mother , generally a mother for the first time tends to believe that she is a superwoman. She has to do everything on her own and the feeling of failiure often comes across when she is unable to do so. motherhood has a constant learning curve which comes with a lot of challenges. Why do we forget that our strength is not determined by our ability or inability to ask for help.A mom is a superhero & even superheroes need help, there is nothing wrong in it! You shouldnot think that saying it out loud is admitting failure. Asking out for help won’t make you a lazy mom nor make you love your child less.
Considering your own opinion :
Now that you are a mom and that too when a mom for the first time, you get a lot of advices from the ones at home, from neighborhood aunties, even maids at home or whosoever visits your place. It’s rightly said that experience matters so you should listen to your elders but at times, it’s painful as you cannot take care of your child the way you want. Some might poke you that the baby is crying because of hunger-you should feed him, some might advice – No! don’t overfeed the child as the baby might get into trouble, some might say that remove his diaper- they are not comfortable to be used for baby’s soft skin, ADD MORE Gosh!! The list is endless. All you can do is to listen and cannot act the way you want.
Personal Hygiene :
Feed-Nap-Poop-Repeat . Mothers don’t even realize when the day began and when it came to an end . Especially the first 3-4 months after the baby’s birth. The baby’s schedule keeps the mother on her toes . So engaged that its’ hard to find time for herself. There have been sleepless nights and problems such as back pain which generally mothers complaint after constantly holding and feeding the baby for a long time. You don’t even find time to take a shower properly and sometimes you have to skip taking bathe and brushing the teeth properly. Even combing your hairs and tying them neatly is something that seems hard to do. Forget about going to a salon and getting a manicure and pedicure when you can’t even bathe properly.
Postpartum ‘baby blues’ :
Postpartum blues are for real. Some moms experience this but donot understand what to do. You will feel emotional, irritable and weepy for the first few days after baby birth. It’s normal because of hormonal changes. But sensation of excess anxiety, hoplessness, disinterest in the baby might lead to postpartum depression as well if it persists for a long time,which then needs to be discussed with the doctor
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