Amazing. Exhausting. Incredible. A really big BLUR. – those are just a few words that may pop into your head when you think of the first night you became a mom. From the moment you find out you are pregnant, the anticipated “due date” can’t come fast enough!
We all imagine and dream of the birth day of our babies. We spend months praying and hoping everything will go smoothly during labor, that baby and mom will be healthy and that we can sleep peacefully, snuggled with our new little angels that first night in the hospital.
But that may not be how it always goes. We asked all of readers on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter the question “What was the first night of being a mom REALLY like?” Here are the responses from 20 REAL moms:
THIS IS WHAT THE FIRST NIGHT AS A MOM IS REALLY LIKE – ACCORDING TO MOMS
Photos in this article are by our amazingly talented photographer Christine Olson Photography
1. “I stayed awake the whole night just staring at him. I couldn’t believe I made such a wonderful little person and didn’t want to take my eyes off of him for a minute. It was hard on my body and emotions in the coming days and weeks, but that first night it was an amazing feeling.”
2. “It was terrifying. I was so scared I was going to break her. She cried a lot, but I am so thankful that my mom was there. She stayed up with me, reassured me, and rocked my teeny, tiny babe while I rested.”
3. “My sweet husband fell asleep and my new baby was wide awake! I cradled her against my skin and sang her songs! She just stared at me! I told her how I will take care of her no matter what and that she was my whole world now! She closed her eyes and fell asleep! We slept the whole first night cuddled like that! It was the perfect night! Just her and I!”
4. “I got NO sleep. Between breast feeding, being in pain, the constant comings and goings of nurses to check on myself or the little man… But that’s what I expected. Everything else just seems to be a blur.”
5. “I slept… a LOT. I only remember waking up to try and feed our son {who didn’t really eat until we left the hospital.} It didn’t hit me that I was a MOM until we got home and didn’t have nurses and doctors around.”
6. “I remember sitting and crying as I held her close and snuggled. I tried nursing, but as a first time mom I almost suffocated my baby with my breast and had to call the nurses because she turned purple! I don’t remember much else of that first night other than I weirdly loved those pressure cuffs that massage your legs… I fell asleep to that rhythm.”
7. “It was lovely – got home about 7.30pm(had baby at 7am) ordered pizza, breastfed for hours and watched a film. We went to bed with our precious little one next to us in her Moses basket. Felt complete.”
8. “I remember staring at the beautiful little girl in the bassinet next to me all swaddled with a purple bow stuck on her head and feeling overwhelmed and in awe that this tiny child was mine. Physically I didn’t feel great. I had a cold and had to wear a mask when I held my bab,y in addition to all the other after birth things. I was so grateful to the kind nurses that helped me feel like I was not going to break my new baby. Leaving the hospital the next night was terrifying. Were they really letting ME take home a baby?!?”
9. “My husband was knocked out on the hospital couch next to me and our new baby. I threw everything to wake him. Nothing worked. I did my best to get up, change and feed my little guy. I had extra mommy strength!”
10. “I didn’t get to see my newborn until the next day. She was rushed off to the NICU right after she was born. I went home a few days later without her. It was painful to go home without a baby. We brought her home when she was one month old. We didn’t want to put her down. We just wanted to cuddle her all the time. Especially since she wasn’t hooked up to any machines.”
11. “It was amazing. I was a single mom so there in that hospital room it was just me and my baby girl, and I couldn’t put her down. I slept with her in my arms, which wasn’t much with the nurses waking us up every few hours, and just took in every sound, face she made, and cry. I think I probably have a million photos just from that night alone.”
12. “My baby cried all night and then eventually I started crying from trying so hard to get him to stop crying. Then I sort of chewed out the lactation consultant for telling me my pinky finger was in the wrong spot while I nursed and then I cried when they came in with a mountain of discharge paperwork to fill out. They all slinked out of my room and put a “do not disturb” sign in my door for six hours while I slept.”
13. “First night in hospital was great. I had a lot of wise advice from friends who were already mothers that said to let the nurses take your baby at night. They said, “you won’t want to but it will help you get some sleep” – It was amazing. They brought him in to nurse and for me to cuddle. The first night at home was a hot mess!! I was sore, my milk came in and I was terrified at how big my breasts got! He didn’t sleep at all. I wanted to run back to the hospital and have the amazing nurses live with me forever. But each night got a little better. I still get a little bit of anxiety when I think of my first nights as a new mom.”
14. “One of my favorite memories of the day was watching my husband hold our new baby. I felt like I finally got to share the experience with him without having to tell him what it was like. It was also wonderful discovering that you could love more than one person with your whole heart and soul.”
15. “I was up ALL night feeding. My son was a big eater. But I couldn’t put him down anyways. It was the most loving/happiest night of my life I would say.”
16. “After I had my twin girls, they had to be taken to the NICU and then were taken to a different hospital. I was so sad not to be with my babies. I slept until I was discharged a day later, then spent the next 4-5 weeks with them every waking hour. So thankful the NICU nurses took such great care of my babies and that I was able to recover with a good nights sleep.”
17. “I was single, got no sleep and had no idea what I was doing! I was so worried if my little girl was comfortable and okay. I tried to sleep sitting up in my recliner while my little girl was sleeping right next to me in her sleep n rocker. I just remember feeding her, swaddling her, crying over how much I loved her and putting her back. This same scenario went on for days. I love her more than anything. She completely changed my life for the better.”
18. “With my firstborn I suffered from postpartum depression. Nothing was what I thought it would be. Leading up to my delivery I had watched every episode of a baby story, read every article on how wonderful motherhood was. It was a huge slap in the face when my daughter was born after a very tough delivery and I felt nothing. That’s it?? All this and I feel nothing? What I did feel was complete failure. What was wrong with me? It took several weeks before I could actually hold my daughter and cry tears of joy instead of tears of frustration. Now with my second child, I didn’t worry about what others thought, what clothes he had, how the nursery looked or who was allowed in the delivery room. I went in with real expectations and it was perfect!”
19. “My husband and I gave each other high fives as our little one slept through the night our first night. Little did we know it would be the last night we’d get a good night sleep for about a good year!”
20. “After the visitors, family and my husband left – it was just me and my baby, just the way I like it. With all three of my babies, I would unbundle them and stare at their new precious body. That moment staring at them is very tender. I place them on my chest and we sleep like that all night. It’s very peaceful just nursing and having them sleep right next to me. I have the normal interruptions of being in the hospital but they don’t bother me. I know that all the beeps and noises is just part of what makes that first night different/memorable/special. I cry every time I leave the hospital knowing that the much anticipated “birth day” is over.”
How was your first night as being a mom? I would love to hear your story!
Don’t forget to share this with all the moms in your life! –
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Danielle is the owner of Today's the Best Day. She strives to provide creative and uplifting content in order to enrich the parenting experience for women everywhere. Danielle hopes to help you and your family to make every day the best day! 
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Brooke
February 25, 2015 at 6:59 pm (9 years ago)My first night was exhausting, i had a long and drawn out labor that ended with a c-section, i was so sick from the morphine i almost fell asleep during the c-section ;( i didn’t get to hold her for about 2 hours, then i had to try hurry and feed her before family came in. after everyone left it all finally hit me, that i had a baby, she was beautiful and all mine. Despite the pain i was in and being so exhausted, i couldn’t sleep. she was so tiny and perfect, she slept pretty good that night, but i couldn’t from the excitement. she’s over a year now and i still think about that long weekend all the time.