What a great topic to discuss. I could talk about this for days... :-)
I guess the best way to deal with the first year of the baby's life is to know that it gets easier: your child will eventually sleep through the night, will eventually feed him/her self, and what helped me was my son's first real social smile (not the gas smile...ha ha). The first 2 months were actually the worst, and I remember thinking: can't I just get a signal, like a smile or something, to know that you appreciate me being up with you every 2-3 hours for 45-60 minutes each time?!
The other way the first year is doable is that infants actually do sleep a lot during the day. When I realized I could still get 6 hours of sleep (just not all-at-once), life became easier. Maternity time-off from work was essential for me, as well as joining a mom's club to get the emotional support from other sleep-deprived, scared and hormonal moms!
My marriage was at its highest during those trying first months, as it seemed we were both on a "baby high" and gave our son (and all the home and work responsibilities) 120%. We both put in all we had, for those few months, which then let the other one, in a more weakened state of the moment, some breathing room. We each had a "night off" each week, which was much-needed relief and "me time".
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What a great topic to discuss. I could talk about this for days... :-)
I guess the best way to deal with the first year of the baby's life is to know that it gets easier: your child will eventually sleep through the night, will eventually feed him/her self, and what helped me was my son's first real social smile (not the gas smile...ha ha). The first 2 months were actually the worst, and I remember thinking: can't I just get a signal, like a smile or something, to know that you appreciate me being up with you every 2-3 hours for 45-60 minutes each time?!
The other way the first year is doable is that infants actually do sleep a lot during the day. When I realized I could still get 6 hours of sleep (just not all-at-once), life became easier. Maternity time-off from work was essential for me, as well as joining a mom's club to get the emotional support from other sleep-deprived, scared and hormonal moms!
My marriage was at its highest during those trying first months, as it seemed we were both on a "baby high" and gave our son (and all the home and work responsibilities) 120%. We both put in all we had, for those few months, which then let the other one, in a more weakened state of the moment, some breathing room. We each had a "night off" each week, which was much-needed relief and "me time".
I can't wait to read other's stories!
October 11, 2008 - 4:54pmThis Comment
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