Becoming a new parent is one of the most nerve-wracking experiences a person can go through. Being on edge constantly, worrying about the baby, wondering if you are doing it all correctly, and lack of sleep all make for a very stressful experience. However, there are a few things that you can do as a parent to relieve some of the stress.
Being prepared as a parent is single-handedly the most efficient way to reduce stress while parenting. For the most part, it is the things that we don’t account for happening that really stress us out. Running out of diapers at grandma’s house can be really nerve wracking, so do your best to pack more diapers than you usually use in a given day. Forgetting an extra outfit for the baby when you are showing them off to the family is also a very stressful experience.
Keeping calm and collected is your best friend when you become a parent. Make a checklist of everything that your baby needs on a daily basis. Then, make sure that you follow the guidelines you set for yourself. As previously stated with diapers, it is always better to over pack as to under pack.
The following new parent checklist will give you some ideas
Food – Food is very important. If you are breastfeeding, then you may want to try to pump extra breast milk for your baby. Always have extra breast milk or formula because you never know when some could spill or sour. Accidents happen, and going without food is unacceptable. And besides, having breast milk ready for your significant other will help take some of the burden off of you. Waking up in the middle of the night for feeding is very stressful, so being overly prepared can take a ton of stress off of new parents.
Clothing in multiple sizes – Clothing is obviously very important for new parents to stock up on. Babies grow incredibly fast, and they are almost always growing at different times. Family hand-me-downs are excellent, but it pays to have several sizes in advance ready for your baby. You never know if your little one is going to grow at the same rate as their sibling or cousin. Diapers are a part of clothing, and you should always have diapers well stocked.
Emergency contacts – Something no new parent want to think about is something happening to them, and they can’t be there for their child. However, it does happen. Sometimes there are problems with pregnancy, and new mothers could end up in the hospital with nobody to take care of their infant. If you are hurt, or even deceased, you need to have a plan in place for the safety of your child. Make sure that you have a quality support system, and more than one emergency contact. We don’t even plan on emergencies happening, but that doesn’t mean you should be unprepared in case it happens. At some point in your life, it will be necessary.
Travis Newville
Breckenridge, Michigan