Making friends during pregnancy
Juliet Blank
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From chat rooms right here on Netmums to antenatal classes in your area, Netmums offers just the helping hand you need for making friends during pregnancy. Here's how to do just that ...
When you get pregnant, it's entirely possible that your closest friends until now aren't. Maybe they've had kids already or maybe they're still single or putting having kids off for the time being.
But panic not.
Whatever stage of your pregnancy you're up to and wherever you live in the UK, there's a whole world of mum-to-be networking going on right now.
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Yep, thanks to antenatal groups, parenting classes, active birth classes, antenatal swimming classes and yoga classes all taking place near you right now, making friends during pregnancy couldn't be easier.
And the friends you meet over the next two or three trimesters could end up being friends for life!
Here are four ways to meet mum-to-be friends ... some of them can even be done without leaving the house!
1. Join your Due Date Club
Meet other mums due at the same time as you, and chat and keep one another company in the build up to the big day by joining your Due Date Club in our chat forum.
This is a great way to share experiences, worries and excitement with those at exactly the same stage of pregnancy as you.
Join your Due Date Club here.
2. Chat in our forum
Whether you're sick of feeling sick, or worried sick about giving birth, there's help and support at your fingertips thanks to our chat forum.
The Netmums-to-Be Board is a special forum for pregnant mums to get together from all over the country for chats and who knows, you may even find fellow mums-to-be who live near you, too.
Start by reading what everyone else is up to and join in the chat when you're ready.
Visit the Netmums-to-be club here
3. Find local classes
From antenatal classes to pregnancy workouts, there are loads of local classes and courses where you can reap the health and wellbeing benefits but also meet mums-to-be who probably live in your area, too.
Take a look at our guide to the different types of classes available, and find out what's available locally here.
4. Do an antenatal course
Whether you choose to do one that's based at your hospital, or a private NCT or antenatal course in your area, this is a great way to meet mums-to-be. Plus, it enables your partner to meet other halves and parents-to-be, too. Why should mums have all the fun?!
Read more about antenatal classes in our guide.
'Friends for life'
We asked Netmums' official midwife, Leah Hazard, about the importance of making mum-to-be friends. Here's what she said:
'For many women, the quest to make new ‘mum’ friends in pregnancy can feel like being back on the dating scene again. Eyes meeting across the room during antenatal classes, shy smiles, a hasty exchange of phone numbers – it can all feel a bit surreal!
'But the friends you make in pregnancy are often the ones who become lifelines during early motherhood.
'Their babies will be at the exact same stage as yours, and they will share your obsession with poos/feeding/sleeping in a way that few of your other friends and relatives will.
'Parenthood can be an isolating time so it’s great to nurture these new connections and build yourself a new social life of sorts – even if that consists of walks round the park or DMs sent one-handed during late night feeds.
'Embrace any opportunity to build your network, whether it’s through friends of friends, aquanatal, baby massage or just that other tired-looking mum sipping a double espresso in your local coffeeshop.’
Wise words.
Tell us about how you're finding pregnancy or how you've managed to make mum friends in our chat thread below ...
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