With a new arrival in the family, it’s only natural that your bundle of love takes center stage for a while. However, new moms and dads may have a tendency to lose themselves and each other over the challenge of becoming new parents. If you’re expecting your first child or your last, here are a few tips that will help you and your partner maintain your strong bonds of love throughout your lives together.
Just like a baby is new to the world, mom and dad have stepped into a whole new one as well. It is easy to assign responsibility to your spouse. When the baby needs a diaper change or won’t fall asleep at night, you may want to assign the stress and anger of sleep deprivation to your spouse. “Can’t they see how tired I am?”, “I come home from a busy day at work, can’t they watch the baby for a little longer?” Divisive questions like these are common to ask ourselves on a daily basis, but are no friend to a loving, sympathetic relationship. Instead of asking questions like these, turn toward a positive tune: “He must be really tired, what can I do to lift his burden?”, “She looks really stressed, I’ll surprise her by bringing home dinner.” We must work on our inner wiring and give our partner the benefit of the doubt.
With so much to glean and explore, babies must be supervised indefinitely to prevent SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome) and other bodily accidents. This level of attention can feel like more than a full-time job. Give your spouse a break. Offer to watch the baby(ies) for an hour. Let your partner take a nap for as long as they need. Draw them to take a nice hot bath! Ask your partner what helps them relax and offer to watch the baby in the meantime.
Lastly, the family is better together. When faced with the frustrations of taking care of a new baby, creating happy memories together can create some of these successes within the home. They can diminish and ultimately override feelings of distress and resentment. It is so important that parents learn to keep the romance alive and create beautiful memories with their newest addition.
For more information about how you can improve your relationship, visit the A Caring Approach blog.