Just curious

I find things that I'd enjoy doing with my son. Eg: I love museums and there's some great kids spaces in many museums so we go to them.

What did you enjoy doing previously? Definitely understand feeling restricted, especially when you can't just leave the house on a whim and it's a whole ordeal to pack everything and everyone. I still try do stuff sometimes that I enjoy. We'll go to the river and get an acai bowl in the sun, go shopping, meet friends at cafes, take the dogs for walks, visit family. Maybe you're needing a bit of a break from being mum 24/7? Any chance of you leaving bub with your partner or family so you can go spend a few hours doing something you enjoy? Xx

Becoming a parent has probably been the most difficult thing I've ever had to do, and I left my entire family and groups of friends to come live on the other side of the planet, so that says something haha I became a parent at 35yo mostly for that reason, I was scared of losing my freedom, something that I have cherished this past 15yo because of a not so easy childhood. It took me a very long time, a very supportive wife, antidepressants, and for my daughter to reach 8 months old (she's now about to turn 1) to feel ok about it. I still find it challenging but I am now able to enjoy it, which has been life changing. All that to say I hear you ! You are definitely not alone in this. Though I'd suggest if you really feel down to talk to your GP about it, ppd is no joke and if untreated can get much worse as time passes.

As for activities, we don't take her to busy restaurants/places where we know it'll be too much for her. She is getting better but for a long time too many people/noises would overwhelm her and she'd loose her shit. But we do take her out a lot, we all love being outside, so we regularly go to the parks, on walks, for picnics etc... we also spend a lot of time in our garden where we've put a swing set, a climbing wall and just doing gardening. I also try to involve her as much as possible in mondane things like running errands, doing the groceries etc as being part of the family / doing things their parents do, is one of the things toddlers loves the most (like helping with the washing, emptying dishwasher, cleaning the floors etc). On regular weekdays I take her to playdates, the library, rhyme time, swimming lessons (if we were closer to the ocean we would probably be at the back every weekend!), music lessons etc ...

Thanks everyone 💗 really appreciate you taking time to reply!! I think I may be needing a break haha my partner is very helpful but I think I need to escape here and there. I’m very outdoorsy and loved going out for dinners etc. We do make an effort to leave the home each day, only for an hour or two, then the rest of the day is filled with chores or we both resort to being on our phones for periods which I hate. I think I just need a push to do more and get out more whereas my partner is happy to chill at home but I’ve now got some great suggestions so thankyou all 🙏

I always make sure to have at least an hour for me. I put the kids in their bed and run to make a coffee or a drink and watch Netflix and start drawing/ painting ( my hobby). if I don't do that for one night then I won't be able to be active the next day. Try to do something you enjoy in your spare time and you'll see the difference 😊 Good luck with your parenting journey

Yes though ours is 3 months old. I miss mental stimulation the most. I just have nothing to talk about except bub and no one talks to me about anything else anymore either. I would love to get back into reading but don't have the focus or time right now. I'm sure each stage will bring its own challenges. I try not to get too down about it.

110% I get you, only thing that honestly helped was just forcing myself to get out of the house with my son. We decided before he was born our life wouldn't change so he is just a tagalong now! We do a lot of camping and travelling so that helps to break up the mundane