Being a new mom is overwhelming and can be quite lonely. New mothers can develop postpartum depression and other mental illnesses after having a baby. Especially if they had a difficult pregnancy and/or have a history of depression or any other type of mental illness.
And this means if you know of a brand new mom, don’t assume that she isn’t struggling even if she says she isn’t. Because she is not being truthful only for the purpose of not wanting to appear needy or being burdensome.
But the fact of the matter is that any brand new mom needs help since her life has been turned upside down, and without the proper support, she can easily, once again, fall into a serious depression. Let’s look at five ways how you can help a new mom out right now:
Offer Help With Running Errands Or Housekeeping
Tell the new mom that you are happy to run some errands for her and that she can pay you back by providing the receipt or she can give you cash to use for her. This way, she does not have to worry about having to do any of that herself.
Additionally, she could use a lot of help with housekeeping. Offer to do laundry or vacuuming, anything that will be needed to help keep the house tidy. She will not have time to do anything because her attention is on the baby 24/7.
And, another thing to consider is that if the new mom sees that the pile of laundry is becoming as high as Mt. Everest, then that will cause her to become anxious which will only make her feel worse.
Help her alleviate that anxiety by taking care of the cleaning and laundry as she cannot have that worry on her plate while she is adjusting to her newborn baby.
Another Way On How To Help A New Mom Is To Cook Or Bring Meals
Offer the new mom meals whether you order meals or cook it up yourself. That is up to you, and even though new moms cannot cook, they are too tired to even call for takeout.
Why not take care of that for her and remove the burden from her when it comes to her worrying about how she will be fed, and how her partner will be fed. She will appreciate you so much for ding that. Even if she can’t show it right now.
Offer To Babysit So She Can Have Important Alone Time With Herself Or With Her Partner
If you are comfortable with watching a newborn, offer her an afternoon to herself or with her partner. It is important that she has her own time, and has time to spend with her partner to help keep her sanity so she can bond with her baby properly.
However, if you are not comfortable, then you can look around for reputable babysitting agencies that have spotless records and pay for a few babysitting sessions for her. That will mean so much to her.
Encourage Her To Join Support Groups For New Moms Online
There are many excellent support groups for new moms on Facebook as well as on other websites like BabyCenter. Encourage her to join those so she will not feel alone at all.
This will help her validate her feelings and her struggles, and interact with those who are in her shoes. Even if she is not seeing them face to face, she will feel less alone by interacting with others in her shoes.
Look For Signs Of Depression
Sadly, many new moms can develop postpartum depression. And be sure to look out for signs that can be indicative of it which are:
- A loss of interest in anything she once loved
- Crying at the drop of a hat well past the baby blues phase which is after 2 weeks of birth
- Not wanting to interact at all and is isolating herself by choice
- A drastic change in appetite whether it is eating nothing or eating too much which would show by significant changes in weight
- She is not knowing interest in the baby at all
- Talking about how worthless she feels
- Red flags that show that she may be thinking of ending her life by saying things like my family would be better off without me
If there are any of these signs, then insist that she talks to a doctor or even call a social worker because this cannot wait.
Additionally, if you are the new mom, you will want to utilize these tips for yourself as well. Don’t be afraid to ask for help because whether you believe it or not, you need it!
Being a brand new mom is not easy and it is an adjustment, but once a routine is in place and your baby is growing, you will grow yourself into motherhood! But if you know of someone who is new to motherhood, these are the ways to help out a new mom. She needs your help!
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