Very Dubai! Beating The Baby Blues, Dubai-style

You had the baby you’d always dreamt of, you got through the pregnancy, birth and hospital discharge. Now, you’re back home, your husband is at work and you’re feeling a little down. It’s normal: You’re tired, your hormones are playing havoc with your emotions and you feel lonely.

I too have just had a baby girl, and while I’m on cloud nine and so in love with her, I also miss my independence. Luckily, in Dubai, there are many ways to beat the baby blues. So, as a newly-exhausted mum, I’ve pepped myself up with coffee and made a handy list for you fellow new mums. Here are your ‘essentials’ for now:

- Lucy Holmes

1 Ok, let’s start with the team talk: Stop worrying about being perfect and be proud of what you’re doing. It’s so hard to cope sometimes, especially if you constantly strive to be a ‘supermum’, but believe me, everybody worries, panics and even the calmest and most collected of mums have their moments. Accept that you’re amazing and pat yourself on the back.

2 Shop, shop, shop. Here’s where the smartphone, and online shopping, come in to soothe your retail needs and ensure an easier life. I’ve spent many a happy hour, at 4.30 am, feeding with one hand and online shopping with the other.

‘BONDS’ have a sale on sleep suits? Click. I needed that cool new doll with the white noise? Click. Diapers? Click. You get the idea. It’s totally fine and justified, especially if you’re the one who’s awake: “I am multi-tasking, darling,” I told my husband when he saw the credit card bill.

3 Time for the spa! Dubai is a hot house (literally) of spas and salons, with plenty of offers and savings for those middle-of-the-day/week, slots. So, scoop up babba and head down to get a quick blow dry; babies love the white noise of hairdryers and ‘should’ sleep.

4 Coffee cake or coffee and cake? Dubai has some lovely family-friendly cafes. My husband reckons maternity leave seems to solely involve eating; he says I go from coffee morning and lunch date to afternoon-tea meeting. Yes, it’s true: I’m fuelling up while caring for our new child.

5 Social media: Oh, Instagram and Facebook, thank you for being there for me through this time, encouraging me throughout the journey of new motherhood.