Get Ready for the Roller Coaster
You’re in line at the amusement park, you hear the screams, you see the people throw their arms up, and they flip around the bends and turns of the roller coaster at breakneck speed. You watch the roller coaster go around the track a dozen times before it’s your turn. Yet somehow, though you’ve seen it all intimately, you can’t have the full experience unless you ride.
That’s kind of how parenthood is. You can watch it from the inside out, but until you’re going down that slope, you’ve got no idea what it’s like or how it feels. You can make educated guesses, though, and prepare yourself. If you know a roller coaster is going to do a loop, you might put things that could fall out of your pockets somewhere safe.
When it’s time to be a mom, you can do something very similar. Having resources in advance is like putting your wallet, keys, phone, and other valuables in a zippered receptacle before getting on the roller coaster. Following we’ll briefly explore a few measures you can take as a new parent that will help you get through the ups and downs better.
MOPS: Mothers of PreSchoolers
When your child starts getting older, they’re going to go through some changes, and so will you. Again, it’s a roller coaster, and you want someone to hold your hand. MOPS helps give you the strategies and support you need, while connecting you with other mothers who are going through just what you are. Check out what they offer here.
Lactation Consultants
Before you give birth, you need to face the reality that breastfeeding might not be as straightforward as you expected. Eat right and get yourself in the right emotional place, but be prepared for the unexpected. Raw paps, clogged milk ducts, failure to latch, an inability to produce milk, and other challenges can develop.
A good way to prepare is to find an IBCLC-credited lactation consultants. They are trained, able, and available when you need them.
General Parental Resource Networks
Beyond MOPS and lactation consultants, you want to look into parental support networks generally. There are multiple options out there, and though you have close friends, though there are family members you trust, neither will be available 100% of the time.
Think of parental support networks as information and services resources, as well as emergency options.
Building a Strong Foundation
MOPS, accredited lactation consultants, and parental resource networks can act sort of like a seatbelt on a gravity-defying roller coaster. Sure, there are grips, but if you let go, you’ll fall out of the roller coaster.
Many mothers make it through raising their child to adulthood with little support. It’s a lot harder, though. Being a mom is important, exhilarating, and complicated. Think this out as best you can, and don’t be afraid of getting help.
