Giving birth is hard.
Taking care of a tiny human who’s 100% dependent on you? Even harder.
And let’s be honest — none of this comes with an instruction manual. No warm-up round. No slow entry. You’re thrown right into the deep end, expected to swim while healing, bleeding, feeding, and functioning on whatever left over energy you have left.
And in the middle of all that, I just wanted my mummy! 😰
I don’t know exactly how to explain it — but there’s something primal about it. Something deeper than how I explain it in words. It’s a longing for a feeling of comfort and security that only she can give.
At first, I thought it was just me. My mum and I are really close, and because she wasn’t able to be near me during these first months I figured of course I’d want her nearby. But now, as more of my friends are having babies, I’m hearing it over and over again.
Turns out, it’s not just a “close relationship” thing — it’s a new mother thing. 🫂
Because your mum gets it.
She’s walked this road. She’s felt the aches, the fear, the pressure, and the pure exhaustion. She knows what it’s like to try and hold it all together when you’re barely holding onto yourself.
She knows what you need — often before you even ask.
She knows how to quietly tidy up the house without making you feel guilty or trying to make small talks or judge you for not knowing how to hold your baby like a pro.
She doesn’t care if you haven’t showered in days.
And best of all? You don’t have to pretend in front of her.
She knows your favourite soup when you’re run down.
She knows how to make you feel cared for, even if all she’s doing is sitting beside you while you cry.
She makes you feel like you’re not doing this all on your own — because you aren’t.
And honestly? That matters so much in those raw, early days.
You can be messy. You can break down.
You can say, “I have no idea what I’m doing,” and she won’t blink.
Because she’s been there and she understands you better than you understand yourself. At least in those moments. 🥰
That’s why, if you have a good relationship with your mum, I wholeheartedly recommend having her nearby in the postpartum period. Not just to help with the baby — though that’s amazing — but to help you.
It will deepen your bond in ways you didn’t expect.
There will be moments where she just instinctively knows what to do or say, where you’ll both sit in silence and feel this unspoken thread of understanding that only another mother can give you.
Let her help. Let her be there.
And if it ever feels like too much — if she starts offering advice you didn’t ask for — it’s okay to gently say, “Mum, I love you, but I just need space right now.” She’ll get it.
Because she’s your mum. And just like you’re learning to be one — she’s been one all along, for you. ❤️