Making It as a New Mom

Changing with the Baby Times

The changes you encounter during your first 30 days are remarkable. Your baby may go from sleeping and eating around the clock with a few alert minutes to a little being with a growing awareness of the world—one who can lift his head, focus on a face and perhaps coo a bit.

However, new moms experience equally profound changes. Although childbirth takes a different toll on every woman’s body, you can expect to feel a bit battered at the beginning of postpartum life. If you’ve had a cesarean section, your body is also faced with the aftereffects of major surgery. And every new mom experiences some sense of self-doubt or anxiety about her own baby knowledge and expertise. Over the coming weeks, however, you’ll master the basics of baby care and your body will begin to return to normal—slowly but surely.

New mothers report that this period of extraordinary growth and change often feels longer because of its frantic pace. In addition, sleep deprivation, baby’s late-night crying jags and an indoor existence can create a sense of isolation from the rest of the world. Some new moms find this isolation comforting, while others pine for figurative fresh air. Jan Ruskin, mother of one, describes new motherhood as “a bit like being in a bubble, everything in the outside world stops. It’s just you, your baby and your husband.”