Why joining a mothers’ group is a good idea

When you have a new baby, your entire world gets turned upside down. You may have gone from working and being used to constant adult interaction to being at home all the time with a tiny person.

The days can seem endless it can be isolating at time and loneliness can often kick in.

Many of your friends may still be child-free and busy with work and social activities, too, so it's a good time to find a new group of friends who understand where you are at in life.

Getting started

All new parents are contacted by a child and family health nurse within the first few weeks after their baby is born and are offered a range of support, including home and clinic visits and access to parent groups.

If you live in a remote area or are struggling to find a group near you, contact the Australian Breastfeeding Association to see if it has a local support group, or check Facebook for local parenting or mums' groups.

Apart from the social aspect, parent groups also offer a lot of support and expert advice from the facilitator, usually a child and family health nurse.

What happens at a parent group?

The first few meetings are usually held at a community centre meeting room. There will be discussions on breastfeeding and parenting, you can raise concerns, ask questions or just have a bit of a rant if you need to.

Rest assured everyone else there is in the same position as you – adapting to a whole new world and suffering from sleep deprivation!

After a few weeks, the formal meetings will end but you can choose to continue meeting up with all or some of the other members in the group.

You may like to get together in a café every week, have a picnic in the park or visit the playground.

As your babies get older, you might also meet up for a girls' night out or weekend away without your kids.

It's a great way to bond, have fun, and talk to other people who understand what you're going through.

You may well end up making lifelong friends, too.

Other ways to meet mums

Parent groups are just one way of meeting new people – there are a host of other options available to you.

There are music groups for parents of newborns to preschool age, your local library may hold rhyme time sessions, go to your nearest playgroup or try 'mums and bubs' fitness groups.