5 Reasons Why Mums Need Good Friends

Taking time out to spend with your girlfriends is beneficial for your health, your kids and your marriage. And while having friends at every stage of your life is important, it’s the friendships we make during motherhood that can really help our wellbeing. Here are 5 reasons why we think mums need to surround themselves with good friends.

1. They Help You Deal With Stress

Research shows that when women are going through a tough time they seek out social interactions. While men’s bodies typically react to stress with a ‘fight or flight’ response women will look for ways to connect with their girlfriends. Be it with a simple phone call, a walk or a coffee, a woman benefits from knowing she has someone to turn to when times get tough. I know personally when I find myself in a pickle, be it with parenting or general life, my girlfriends are the ones I turn to first. They will let me talk through my problem without feeling the need to solve it. Which is why having a few good friends who are willing to listen to you despite their own busy lives are worth their weight in gold.

2. They’re Not Your Mother

4. They Get You Like Your Husband Can’t

 

A friend of mine calls me regularly to complain about her heavy periods. She says that when she tried telling her husband he said ‘aren’t you used to the pain after all these years?’ Ummm…what?! Men simply do not understand certain things. Women just GET it. We can complain to each other about trying to juggle work and kids. Cooking meals every night. Making the school lunches. Trying to work from home while running a household. Complaining about leaking breasts. A weak bladder. The fact we can no longer jump on trampolines. Or wear high heels without dying. All this means nothing to our men. Of course we still love them. And we love the fact they try their hardest to get us. But they just don’t. Period.

5. They’ve Been Where You Are

While it’s awesome to have friends with kids the same age as yours. It’s even better having friends with kids of different ages. Especially older ones. Through them you’re able to gain a bit of an insight in what lays ahead for you and your child. Our friendship group has a mum with a young child as well as a mum with a 19 year old daughter. The mum of the teenager is especially ‘useful’ as we bombard her with constant questions about dating, sex and teenage life in general. While our kids may not be quite at that stage yet they will be one day, so the intel is most beneficial!

So how do you go about making new friends as a mum or an adult in general?

• Get out there – Literally get out of the house and go for a walk. Talk to other mums in the park. See if they want to catch up for a coffee next week, You may just meet your new BFF.
• Make the first move – It’s scary, yes. But take a deep breath and start up a conversation with the other mum at the playground. What’s the worst that can happen?
• Get contact information – Make sure you exchange contact information so that you can organise a coffee the following week or meet each other again at the park.
• Plan the first playdate – You already have something in common- your children! So use it to your advantage and be the first to plan a playdate. Pick a time and place that’ll work for both of you.

Images: Pixabay

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