Editor:
Why I am concerned about losing Parentlink?
Eight months ago I gave birth to my beautiful son and became a mother.
Maybe I was too busy trying to finish up at work; maybe I was naive when it comes to motherhood, but I didn’t take any time to reflect upon my pregnancy and the arrival of our son until little bub’s grand entrance.
Strangely and uncharacteristically enough, I was caught off guard by and feeling extremely unprepared for my new role as a mother.
I was lucky enough to have my own mom here (both my partner’s and my family live in Europe) and she took great care of us. However, at three weeks post partum she had to leave for home and I was left alone with this tiny little human I had to take care of.
Almost instantly my anxiety to fail kicked in. This led to excessive researching of sleep and feeding schedules, activities to entertain baby, the best toys to stimulate his brain development, milestones, etc., etc.
The Internet is a dark place for a first-time mom and being the first of my friends in the Bow Valley to have become a mother, I had no one in my direct surroundings to discuss my findings with.
Luckily I was introduced to Parentlink through the Birth and Beyond classes provided by the Primary Care Network and the Mountain Maternity Clinic.
The Parentlink's Nighty Night Sleep Tight for Infants and Babies and Feeding your Baby workshops gave me the opportunity to educate myself, ask questions and test my own findings. Not only did this provide me with the confidence needed to create a successful routine for myself and my little one, it also made me feel incredibly supported.
I was also very fortunate to be able to attend the popular I Grow, You Grow program offered by Parentlink a few times a year. Not only did I meet an incredible group of first time moms, with littles of similar age as mine, we also discussed topics such as infant CPR, sensory play, eye care, brain and language development with experts brought in by the Parentlink staff.
Through these hands-on activities, Parentlink provided me with the tools to manage my anxiety and to enjoy motherhood.
However, I feel there’s still so much more to learn and that is why I would like to save Parentlink.
Amy Clark,
Canmore
