What is the hardest thing about having a new baby?

New research reveals 85% of Mums say lack of sleep is the hardest thing about having a baby and we know that not enough sleep dangerously impacts the emotional and physical state of new parents.

With the majority of new Mums surviving on less than five hours of broken sleep a night, it’s not surprising that more than half feel lack of sleep is having a seriously negative impact on their life and that of their baby’s, says leading paediatrician Dr Johnny Taitz.

Dr Jonny Taitz, Consultant Paediatrician at The Children’s Clinic in Sydney, is commenting on a national research report[1] by baby sleepwear company Love To Dream that delves into the relationship between new mums and sleep, or lack there-of.

“Whilst the overarching theme that not enough sleep has negative consequences is no great surprise, the research reveals some thought-provoking findings about emotional and physiological effects of lack of sleep,” said Dr Taitz.

The emotional effects sited by the new mums included 63% saying it made them overly emotional, 58% were left feeling grumpy or angry, 30% felt unable to cope and 27% felt depressed. The physical manifestations of this included more than one in 10 falling asleep whilst caring for their baby, almost half falling asleep whilst feeding their baby and more than one third saying it impacted their own health.

“These emotional and resulting physical effects are most concerning as the majority of people underestimate just how damaging sleep deprivation can be, even partners and other family members. It can have very dangerous ramifications on both the mother and child,” concluded Dr Taitz.

According to the research results, close to 60% of new mums find the idea of a full night’s sleep more appealing than a date with their favourite celeb or a romantic evening with their partner; and more than 30% would give up an overseas holiday for eight hours of interrupted sleep.

“People often get so overwhelmed when they are going through this stage of parenthood and that was exactly the situation I faced as a new mum, but I was determined to find a solution to help my baby sleep better,” said Hana-Lia Kruwchuk, Company Founder of Love To Dream.

[1] National survey of 600 mums aged 18-45; questions based on babies being less than three months of age

Main image courtesy of Shutterstock.com

27 Comments

- - ChiWren said
  - 03 Jan 2024
    11:59 pm
I was definitely the emotional lack of sleeper haha. The first few weeks are so hard!

- - mom94125 said
  - 18 Oct 2015
    4:10 pm
maybe because sleep is closer to reality than actually getting to meet a celeb is

- - mom101751 said
  - 18 Feb 2015
    4:58 pm
no sleep

- - june11 said
  - 21 Dec 2014
    1:11 am
Another issue is learning their different cries. After awhile to learn to discern a hungry cry. Another cry signifies tummy pain and they pull their legs up high instead of reasonably straight. Some have a different cry when they are tired or overtired. Even toddlers will sometimes cry when they get tired not just rub their eyes as some do.

- - rachaelchara said
  - 01 Dec 2014
    1:21 pm
Definitely lack of sleep is the worst thing, hard to concentrate and function with no sleep.

- - mom82590 said
  - 01 Nov 2014
    10:24 pm
The hardest thing for me was the lack of sleep and eating

- - mom102977 said
  - 31 Oct 2014
    8:10 pm
Yes, lack of sleep is definitely the hardest thing. But it does get better

- - Olivias_mum14 said
  - 25 Oct 2014
    4:47 pm
I’m on day 4 and finding breast feeding the hardest, I get worried and emotional when I feed her then 20minutes later she wants to feed again I’m concerned I don’t get enough milk but the midwife says it’s normal so I have to push through!

- - Mrsjharding said
  - 15 Oct 2014
    1:38 pm
Something to look forward to hahaha 4 weeks til due date!

- - pakeko said
  - 04 Oct 2014
    5:36 pm
For me it was the lack of sleep mixed with health issues

- - mom101751 said
  - 04 Oct 2014
    5:35 pm
th e hardest thing is when they are sick and you cant stop them crying

- - 191joannes said
  - 30 Sep 2014
    6:52 pm
I think the hardest thing is not knowing if the baby is happy until you get that first smile. Along with breast feeding found this to be the hardest thing I ever tried to do and its suppose to be natural phew way hard

- - mom57522 said
  - 28 Sep 2014
    2:20 pm
Lack of sleep of course!

- - SJMc said
  - 26 Sep 2014
    1:33 pm
Spot on. So hard to deal with anything when sleep deprived. I now know why it has been used as a form of torture.

- - mom56842 said
  - 25 Sep 2014
    4:09 pm
I could have done with more sleep in the early days.

- - catchick56 said
  - 22 Sep 2014
    10:48 am
I find not knowing what they want when they are crying for no apparent reason more of an issue as I am lucky and have a pretty good sleeper.

- - cloverstorm said
  - 18 Sep 2014
    10:55 am
I’ve managed to get through the day on no sleep at all quite a few times, but it leaves you so wrecked. Lack of sleep is definitely not good for your body or state of mind.

- - twinmum83 said
  - 18 Sep 2014
    7:42 am
Well I had twins – as newborns they had a couple of issues, but nothing major. I hated people telling me, it gets easier, or I know how you feel. Did they ever have newborn twins, no, they had no idea, but I always smiled politely and agreed. I also hated all the unwanted attention and advise and questions that every stranger that I passed in a shopping center wanted to instill on me about twins. I was quite lucky, my girls slept through from 6 weeks, its only now they are 2 that they wake constantly at night.

- - Bela said
  - 17 Sep 2014
    9:33 am
For me, it was breastfeeding. I found it nightmarish and was well on my way to a breakdown for a while there. Lack of sleep is hard too as I found the “sleep when baby sleeps” advice unrealistic.

- - cherz said
  - 16 Sep 2014
    9:39 pm
Having a nap through the day when bubs down helps.
- tam_watters replied
  
  05 Oct 2014 , 11:17 pm
  I love the comment seen recently on social media – sleep when baby sleeps, eat when baby eats, clean when baby cleans!! He he