The Importance of Making Mom Friends: Building a Supportive Network
Trying to make friends as a mom can be awkward and difficult, and it’s even more challenging as an introvert! However, building a supportive network of friends can help with feelings of loneliness and isolation that often accompany motherhood. If you struggle to find connections, these tips will help you find the right group of mom friends to encourage and empower you through your journey as a mother.
If you’re new to my blog, welcome! My name is Michaela, and I started this blog to share my journey as a homeschooling mom of six, including our son, who was diagnosed with cancer at the age of 4. I write about our favorite recipes, non-toxic swaps, encouragement for moms, and more. If you’re interested in learning more, here are some of my recent posts:
11 Ways to Build Stronger Mother-Child Relationships
Encouragement for Overwhelmed Moms
In today’s post, I’ll share the importance of making mom friends and tips to help you find the right group. Here are some of the tips I’ll share:
How to find the right group of friends for you
The value of mom friends
Building solid and supportive relationships
Navigating motherhood together
I’ve always felt pretty content with a small group of friends and spending time alone. But once the responsibilities of motherhood, caring for littles, and running a home added up, I found myself needing more support outside of the friends I had. I became a mom very early in life and had no friends my age experiencing the same situations. My life drastically changed instantly, and I found myself craving different types of support than I was currently receiving. I needed friends who could relate to what I was experiencing. Here’s some advice I would give other moms looking for supportive mom friends.
How to find the right group of friends for you
As a young parent, making mom friends was even more difficult then. I quickly realized that finding the right group of friends for my life at the time wouldn’t magically happen without putting in the work myself. This was especially hard when I have spent so much of my life enjoying a small group of friends. Fear of rejection and judgment can make you shrink away from things outside your comfort zone, but feeling lonely and unsupported forced me to keep trying.
Making mom friends often involves small talk, allowing you to learn what you have in common with another mom. While this can be awkward initially, it allows you to learn more about each other, similarities, likes, and parenting styles. Push through the potential discomfort and allow your connection to grow.
The value of making mom friends
Having friends who relate to what you’re experiencing will not only help relieve feelings of isolation or loneliness but will also encourage you to speak up when you need support or encouragement. You are not alone on this journey. Motherhood can be beautiful and enjoyable; finding a supportive group of mom friends will help you see that.
A study by Arizona State University found that friendships can help mothers focus on their mental health and feel more confident in their parenting skills. Mothers with friends outside of their family showed they had less stress, could focus on their well-being, and felt more confident in their role as a parent. This is incredible! Remember this if you ever start to feel guilty. It is not selfish to want a group of friends who support you and understand what you’re experiencing in motherhood.
How to build solid and supportive relationships
Allow yourself to connect with new people. This may feel challenging, but making mom friends requires putting yourself out there.
Be yourself: Don’t feel like you need to change who you are to make friends! If you don’t like a specific activity, don’t set up a playdate that requires that activity. Instead, suggest activities you enjoy and work from there.
Talk with other moms at the playground/church/school pickup: I understand that this can be awkward, but you must start somewhere! Chances are other moms feel the same way you do and want to make more friends.
Take a class: Do you like exercising? Look for a group class you could attend and find friends. Look up your local library, see if they have reading groups, and meet other moms there.
Start your own group: This may seem a little intimidating, but if you’re in the position to start your own group, go for it! Host it at your home, a park, or even a coffee shop, and put yourself out there! As moms, we often put our needs last, but as we now know, solid and supportive friendships can make motherhood easier for us.
Use the Internet to your advantage: No matter where you are, there’s an online mom’s group available that’s perfect for you. The great thing about online mom groups is they can be accessed from anywhere! While not the same as spending time together in person, this can be a great way to get to know people first and fill in the gaps while you work to find friends who fit your needs. Facebook is a great place to start. Search for groups based on your location to start, and work from there.
Navigating motherhood together
Having a group of supportive mom friends who are there for the ups and downs, know what you’re facing, and can offer support is incredible. They may be able to offer suggestions you never would have considered, relieving potential stress and anxiety for you.
Remember that you don’t have to do this alone, and while making mom friends will take time, having a group of people you can rely on, ask for advice, and share your life experiences with will help you feel more confident in your role as a mother.
Conclusion
We covered a lot of tips today, but I hope this post has encouraged you to make mom friends of your own and find a group of mothers who love you and want to help you succeed in your role. Motherhood can be the most incredible role if you let it, and having a group of women in your corner only makes it easier!
Thank you so much for reading. If you found this post on making mom friends encouraging and helpful, please share it with a friend and pin it to your favorite board on Pinterest.
Until next time,
-M
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