One of your top priorities is: Don’t try to do too much. For
example, the week after having your baby is not the time for
you to host your family from out of town.
As my mother used
to say, “Don’t be stupid polite!” A few well-wishers are fine, but
only if they’re healthy and helpful. Visitors who can’t cook or
clean take up your precious time and, what’s worse,
they can
carry germs into your home. People
you keep away may call you
paranoid but, in truth, you never had a better reason for being
neurotic and overprotective!
Another good idea is to leave a sweet announcement on your
answering machine, giving your baby’s important statistics and
telling everyone that you won’t
be returning calls for a few
weeks. Of course, you can always return calls if you want, but
this at least frees up enough time to accomplish even higher
priorities—like soaking in a hot tub.
Rest: The Essential Nutrient for New Parents
Sometimes the most urgent and vital thing you can
do … is take a nap.
Ashley Brilliant
When we were teenagers, we were “dying” to stay up all night.
Now, we’re “dying” if we stay up all night!
The extreme fatigue that goes along with being a new parent can
make
you feel depressed, irritable, inept, and distort your
perceptions of the world like a fun-house mirror. (Some countries
torture people by waking them up every time they fall asleep!)
So please nap when your baby does,
sleep when your mom comes,
and, however you have to do it—get some rest!
