Parenting can feel like a lonely occupation. You spend much of your time with a demanding, fickle, uncommunicative little person who, though the love of your life, can certainly put you through the wringer at times. This a time in your life when you need support. Just having someone else to talk to who knows what you are going through can make you feel immeasurably better.

Friends and Family

Friends and family can provide important support. Your own mother or mother-in-law can be a great support person for you. She's been through it all and has made it to the other side. Although a lot of things about childrearing have changed over the years, the basic skills have not.

Sisters, sisters-in-law, and other close relatives are another great source of support. Since they're closer to your age, they are more likely to understand about today's parenting challenges. Friends with children are important. Not only are they going through the same things, they are able to offer advice without the added baggage or expectations that sometimes comes with advice from family.

Forging close relationships with friends or relatives with children close in age to yours can give you a sense of community and let you rely on each other for things such as babysitting, play dates, and shoulders to cry on.

Mothers' Groups

Reaching out and finding a local mothers' group is a great way to make new friends who are mothers and who may be experiencing a lot of what you are. Mothers' groups can be formally organized or casually drawn together. You can find listings of formal clubs in church newsletters, regional family magazines, on community bulletin boards, and through word of mouth. Some mothers' clubs form among those attending the same childbirth education class or prenatal exercise class.

Other groups come together in less organized ways. You might strike up a conversation with a mom at day care and eventually meet her and another friend of hers for coffee. Moms in your neighborhood or on your block might become friends.

While moms' groups can be a true lifeline, there can be some difficulties navigating them. If you're joining an established group, you may feel like an outsider until you get to know everyone. There may be people in the group you simply don't click with, or as your children grow, you might find that the kids don't get along very well. Ultimately you have to do what is right for you and your child in these kinds of situations.

Online Support

While having a friend who can hug you and baby-sit for you is a great thing, it is possible to make friends whom you don't know in person. You can now find any kind of specialized support group online that you could ever dream of. Some women join due-date clubs while they're pregnant and converse online with other women due in the same month they are. Many of these groups last for years, as the women support each other through the many stages their children go through.

Online groups can be a convenient way to make friends since you can read and send messages at any time of day. It's important to be careful and not offer personal information (such as addresses, phone numbers, and so on) online unless you really and truly know someone very well.