New baby in the house? I’m guessing that alongside your joy and relief about the whole childbirth thing being over, you might be exhausted or depleted or confused or just plain cranky about being home all day and operating in a vortex of what feels like nonproductivity.
Pause right there, and 1) know that life with baby is never not non-productive (even if it feels like it), and 2) I’ve got some hacks that helped me feel productive when I was a first-time mom. Are they earth-moving? Nope. Will they boost your happiness and sense of self during a very blurry time? Yes.
So here goes nothing, sleep-deprived new moms:
1. Fix your bed
Yes, you can do it! I started this nauseatingly perky habit within the first few months of bringing baby home. I’d previously heard a Navy SEAL give a speech about how the mundane habit of bed-fixing will positively motivate a productive day ahead for anyone. You don’t need to do it perfectly, you just need to do it before bedtime. I soon became notorious for 5 p.m. bed-fixing on many days — which didn’t matter because when I went to bed that night, I crawled into my made bed and felt like I had a productive day.
2. Drink water on a schedule
I swear this is life-changing. When my babies were newborns, I remember not even thinking about drinking anything but coffee, coffee, coffee just to keep me awake and sane. Red alert: I soon started having heart palpitations that almost convinced me I was in some kind of postpartum cardiac arrest. Our bodies NEED water, especially if we’re downing caffeine. Otherwise, bouts of insomnia due to dehydration might soon follow.
3. Resist asking medical questions online
Trust me, resist clicking on every article you scan that details things like “the hidden health meanings of how often your baby spits up, cries, poops, or sleeps during the day” or “should you be concerned about how often your baby spits up, cries, poops, or sleeps during the day?” And rashes? Do not — I repeat, DO NOT — inquire about them on any kind of Facebook mom group. Limiting your own screentime will keep your brain functioning in a more rational and controlled way — our human brains are not wired to tolerate the amount of information stimulation most of us typically access during the day. Scientists have compared how the brain responds to screentime as similar to the effects of cocaine. Don’t be a new mom on drugs.
4. Store lip gloss, body spray or essential oils in your kitchen
Not that makeup is the most important thing, but there’s no shame in feeling better with swiping some shimmer on your lips and smelling nice. I’d shamelessly toss in a few go-to primping faves in my junk drawer for easy access midday, between washing baby bottles in my sink. Because going back to my bathroom for a refresh was too complicated.
5. Empty the kitchen sink every night
This was always a nonnegotiable for me unless I was ill or seriously pissed off and trying to make a point about household duties with my husband. An empty sink before you go to bed will make you sleep better at night, especially because once you wake up to a clean sink, you’ll never want to wake up any other way. Don’t scream at me, I promise this isn’t as demanding or time-consuming as it seems — and it’s worth it.
6. Preset your baby feeding requirements before you go to bed
This one’s for the formula feeders! The power to avoid bumping into furniture in the dark while making your way into the kitchen to find a bottle as your baby screams for milk in the middle of the night lies with you. Get organized on your nightstand for those overnight feedings before you hit the sack: Set up your pre-filled bottles of perfectly measured water and pre-measured formula (in baggies or compartmentalized snack containers) alongside a few burp cloths. You’ll barely even need to be conscious at all when baby wails for her midnight milk — but you’ll be ready. Voilà!
7. Commit to no poop talk
Meaning, absolutely no conversations with friends about baby poop, diapers, crap, pee, that grainy-mustard newborn phenomenon, and/or farting of any kind. I challenge you to resist the urge to loudly announce, “Fire down below!” should your babe have a movement in the presence of visitors — especially the kinds of visitors who don’t yet have children. You’ll soon see how all-consuming the poop talk can get when a newborn is in the picture. Avoiding poop talk in the early days of baby makes a stoic promise to yourself that you will maintain a shred of pre-baby manners and priorities through this new parenthood thing.
8. Put on a dress every Friday
This is for absolutely no one else but yourself. I spent the first month with baby literally living in my underwear, but I willed myself to put on something that made me feel good once a week. Even if I did nothing more than feed a baby and clean my toilets that day. And even if I took it off and changed back into my underwear after 30 minutes. Seeing yourself in real clothes gives an inexplicable, much-needed boost for the mind and spirit. It is what it is.
Do things that make you tick, make you feel alive, remind you of YOU. Because that’s what all babies need – a mommy who feels capable and productive, even if she laid on the floor next to a plush baby jungle gym for most of the day.
