The pandemic was bad for everyone.
Among the hardest hit: new mothers.
Forced to give birth without loved ones present, then home alone — isolated, sometimes with no mothers or mothers-in-law to help — those first weeks and months affected many women’s mental health.
Abby Dixon vowed to do something. A reproductive and perinatal mental health therapist, the Westport mother of 3 young children created Joywell. Its online courses, group coaching and “concierge services” help guide women through worries and stresses, and into the joys of pregnancy and motherhood.
Abby Dixon
New mothers found comfort and care through Joywell. But Abby wanted to do more.
New Mom School fit her like a onesie.
Founded in California in 2012 by a new mother who felt “overwhelmed, joy-depleted, almost held captive by the new tiny boss” in her life, it offers classes ranging from the basics of newborn care and lactation to handling a second child.
Abby found a central and welcoming location: 25 Sylvan Road South (opposite Sylvan Tennis Club). Westport’s New Mom School opened last month.
It offers much more than advice on feeding schedules and sleep training. It provides tools to overcome isolation, rediscover joy (and perhaps save sanity and preserve marriages).
It also delivers something that Abby believes is essential for new moms: community.
Mothers are matched by due dates and their baby’s age. That’s crucial, she says, because “post-partum struggles are very different from a mom with a 6-month-old.”
There is plenty of practical advice, of course. A feeding expert recently spoke on how to start solids, and the difference between gagging and choking.
Another discussed pediatric play; a third, pelvic floor exercises. There are Pilates classes too.
Learning to play …
But it’s creating a community of new moms that drives Abby’s New Mom School.
After just a few days, women in one infant class created a What’sApp group, and met up at Bartaco.
Through Instagram or word of mouth, a few dozen women have found New Mom School.
They come from Westport, Weston, Wilton, Black Rock, New Canaan, Stamford and Newtown. All share similar concerns and questions. All have found answers — and kindred spirits — at Abby’s school.
In the works for the fall: monthly hobby nights, for crocheting, mah jongg and more. New mothers can get together over “more than just food and wine,” Abby notes.
… and creating a community.
What about dads? Abby plans free monthly meetings — with donuts — for fathers to come, with their newborns. The first session is May 17, 9:30 to 11 a.m.
There are New Mom Schools in 12 states. Abby’s is the only one in Connecticut.
A grand opening is set for June 1 (1 to 4 p.m., 25 Sylvan Road South, Suite U). Click here for more information on New Mom School — including their free breastfeeding support group.
(“06880 covers every aspect of education — from kindergarten and high school, to new moms. If you learn something from our stories, please click here to support our work. Thank you!)
