6 Things New Moms Do Online That Might Affect The Baby
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Once a woman welcomes her little angel into this world, her happiness and excitement know no bounds. She’ll, quite understandably, feel like sharing this happy phase with the rest of the world. And, to do so, she’ll frequently share these updates on her social media account through her phone. However, there is a flipside to this too because, in their enthusiasm, many new moms go a little overboard while sharing information online. In the process, they might unwittingly put themselves as well as their babies in the line of danger. We bring you here 6 such things that new mothers do online that might affect their baby:
1. Oversharing Pictures Online
Click and post! With a baby as cute as yours, this is all you’ll feel like doing the whole day. However, without realizing, you’ll soon be posting unfiltered pictures of your baby. Remember, what looks cute today will soon become embarrassing for your baby once he/she grows up – like pics of your baby’s first bath. They can easily be bullied or made the butt of jokes if such pics land into wrong hands. Of course, you might argue about the privacy settings. But even a casual screenshot by someone can make them go viral. So, be very discreet about the kind of pics you share online.
2. Posting Important Details On Social Media
You might be on cloud 9 when your baby makes it to the daycare or has a special occasion like his/her first birthday coming up soon. However, refrain from sharing the name, location, and timings of your baby’s daycare online. Even sharing birthday invitations online is a complete no-no as these invitations contain detailed addresses of your residence along with contact numbers. This personal information can be easily misused by the anti-social elements lurking around the internet.
3. Taking Medical Opinions On Internet
Remember the time when our parents used to rush us to the doctor every time we fell ill? With a lot of medical information available at the click of a button, most mothers nowadays prefer searching for medical opinions online rather than visiting a doctor. Not only that, but this half-baked information also creates distrust between the patients and the doctors. Remember, no amount of online advice is a replacement for actual medical advice given by a trained medical professional.
4. Spending More Time Online
The most common flipside of being on social media is the pressure to stay relevant and garner attention in the form of “likes” and “comments”. This pressure forces new moms to spend a considerable amount of time online, neglecting their babies in the bargain. Your little one needs your warmth, care, and love through your undivided attention and eye contact, without which the mother-baby bond will prove hard to nurture.
5. Unfair Comparison With Other Babies
There are many new moms on social media who like to boast about their baby’s achievements. When you take them seriously, you’ll end up comparing your baby unfairly with the other babies. This subconsciously makes you set unfair benchmarks for your innocent child and can become a cause of friction and frustration when they don’t meet them. You need to realize that each baby is unique and special, and so is your’s. Just accept and love your baby the way he/she is instead of falling into the trap of online boasting and comparison.
6. Getting Bullied By Cyber Moms
New mothers too can become victims of online bullying. In view of recent happenings, “Sanctimommy” is now becoming a widely used term to describe mothers who have an overly critical view of other mommies’ way of parenting. Such sanctimommies are very harsh in their criticism of the style of parenting that other mothers adopt, sometimes to an extent of bullying. This may affect your confidence and make you question your parenting style, thereby causing you distress. Just like each baby, every parent’s style of parenting differs too. So, be careful of such online bullying by other mothers and stick to doing what you do best!
We hope this information has opened your eyes to the things you might encounter online and how to safely use the internet. Have a strong self-belief, practice caution, and do not get swayed by popular trends, and you should just be fine! Be safe, mommies!
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