When my son was first born, I was caught up in a world where the days and nights were reversed. The concept of time had left our home along with other notions like sleeping and showering. My routine consisted of feeding sessions, short sleep cycles, and diaper changes — over, and over, and over.
During this time, the only human I saw or talked with was my newborn. Although he was fabulous at drooling, he wasn’t much of a conversationist. We became stuck in our own private Baby Bubble. A Baby Bubble is a strange phenomena that swallows the parent of a newborn into a small, enclosed nothing-but-baby world. If you’re wondering if you’ve gotten stuck in your own Baby Bubble, here are nine giveaway clues that you are:
1. You have no time to wash anything — including yourself
Your laundry pile is multiplying like Gremlins after midnight. Remembering when the laundry was done and folded for the adults is like trying to remember what it looked like the last time you went out to a movie — which was probably when you last washed your hair.
2. Is that a fancy design or spit-up on your clothes?
Is that a trendy paint-splatter pattern on those joggers you’ve been wearing for the last four days or just baby breakfast? It’s hard to tell the difference, but does it really bother you? Your newborn doesn’t care what you look like, and these days, neither do you.
3. You no longer have any concept of time
You’re not sure when you last left the house. Yesterday? Last week? Prom? When caught in a never-ending loop of not sleeping, baby feedings, and not sleeping, it’s easy to feel like you’re in a creepy episode of Black Mirror. Losing track of all normal human time is totally normal while stuck in the land of strange baby time.
4. You can't believe your heart can hold so much love for a tiny human
When you were pregnant, it wasn’t only your belly that expanded — your heart grew with it. Something besides massive amounts of caffeine powers you through the rough patches of parenting — it’s all that love you feel for your baby that gives you that inner strength to make it all happen.
5. You can't believe your boobs can hold so much milk for a tiny human
For those who’ve chosen to breastfeed, the miracle of childbirth has filled your breasts with nutritious mother’s milk. Who knew vitamins weighed so much?! Your boobs are magically producing the exact amount of milk your baby needs. Who knew your baby needed two gallons of milk an hour to fall asleep feeling full?
6. You don't care if your home is clean
The dirty laundry, the dirty dishes, and the dirty floors are all…well…dirty. Your home looks like your college dorm room did during finals week. Instead of stuffing those foul-smelling empty pizza boxes and dirty clothes under your bed, this time you shrug it off and take a nap in your comfy laundry pile.
7. You never realized your partner didn't know so many things
Diaper changes, bedtimes, and bath time are all of a sudden as scary to your partner as Brussels sprouts, vacuuming, and Project Runway. That baby class you took and those words you speak leave your partner’s brain frozen and inactive when it comes to helping with your newborn. No, babies don’t burp all by themselves.
8. You can't remember what anything outside your home looks like
You remember a yellow thing in the sky and buildings where you could sit and a super nice person would bring you food. Being indoors with your newborn can drag on. It can be hard remembering what real life looks like beyond your front door.
9. You can tell time using diaper changes as a guide
That round thing with the numbers and the long sticks that move — that’s a clock. People use it to measure time. Now you have a better way: how many diapers you’ve changed from sun up to sundown. Nap times may throw a wrench into this system, but that’s when you count the dirty bottles lying in the sink.
Without much time for anything other than baby-related tasks, a Baby Bubble keeps you and your newborn locked tight in your own little world. This time together can feel never-ending, but eventually the bubble pops. Your world will reopen, the laundry will be washed (along with your hair), and life will shift yet again as your heart expands, even more, to accommodate all the milestones yet to come.
