Infant Tips

Becoming a New Mom

Yes, becoming a mom was by far the best experience of my life, but it was also the scariest.  I love my little guy more than I can possibly express through words but those first couple months were very hard for me.  Most of the stories my friends and family shared with me were heartwarming, yet only a few tried to tell me what it was REALLY going to be like.

I had a wonderful pregnancy and truly enjoyed being pregnant.  I kept a weekly blog of the experience along with updated baby bump photos so that I could share the experience with long distance family and friends (and of course my son once he was older).  Throughout my pregnancy I took prenatal yoga, continued working out, ate extremely healthy and read the entire What to Expect When Expecting book, as most new moms do. 


We all know every new moms experience is going to be different, but the lack of sleep a new mom gets is not.  I am nor a morning person nor night person, but to go from having at least 8 hours of sleep a night to tracking every time D and I were able to get 90 minutes of continuous sleep was torturous.  Knowing that every new mom had gone through this in some form or another helped me through those first 10 weeks.  That was how long it took before D started sleeping through the night.  If someone could have just said “Allison, you just have to get through the first 10 weeks and then your little bundle of joy will start sleeping peacefully through the night – and you will too” would have helped me tremendously.

My advice to all those new moms out there is just know that you WILL eventually get through the non-sleeping phase and you are NOT the only one.  We’ve all heard sleep when the baby sleeps and I’ll be honest with you and say I did not follow that rule, but it truly is GREAT advice.  The dishes aren’t going anywhere, the laundry will get done and you can DVR that soap opera that you don’t want to miss.  Just try and get some sleep. 

What are some other new mommy tips you’d like to share?

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Dr. Levine

Dr. Alanna Levine is a New York based pediatrician and a mom of two children.