Hourly wake-ups, yet another feed, pacing the floor with a crying bub... the early years with a baby can be gruelling, at times torturous.
But what makes it extra hard is the ambush of advice that leaves you spinning.
My mum died just before my first child was born, so my parenting experience within those early years was fraught with grief. Compounded by the challenging task of being a new mother with no clue what I was doing, I was a prime candidate for taking on any suggestions – from books, blogs and pods, to family, friends and ‘experts’.
Not only was the amount of information of intense proportions (albeit well-meant), but the real clincher was the way one recommendation could totally contradict another.
And sadly, in large part because of this plethora of ‘shoulds’ and ‘shouldn’ts’, parenting in those early years wasn’t something I particularly enjoyed.
Watch: Here's what the horoscopes look like as new mums. Post continues after video.
From the moment my son was born, the floodgates opened. Fearful of making the ‘wrong’ choice, I read everything I could get my hands on and listened intently to whatever advice came my way.
I learned all manner of conflicting things.
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