What Was Your Post-Partum Comfort TV?
I loved my maternity leave – the discovery of a new way of life for myself and my family. It was quite nice to know I didn’t have to be anywhere, and that I just had the gift of time with my darling daughter after she was born. Of course, there was a lot of down time too, and I wanted to fill it with something easy. My friends came through for me with dvds galore.
Our first order of business was to watch “Sports Night”, the complete series. This was a (too) short-lived dramedy on ABC written by Aaron Sorkin (he of ”The West Wing”) – and it is brilliant! It came in wonderful little 22-minute episodes, enough for a feeding or two. Those first nights when I was trying to figure out nursing were stressful, and having a good new show to consume was just what my stressed out body needed. It took us about 2 weeks to watch ‘em all. Then we watched them again. If you haven’t seen this show, get it to the top of your Netflix queue, stat.
During the day, when hubby was at work, I needed some adult company, something to make me feel normal. Occasionally a friend would come over and provide that for me, but there were many, many quiet afternoons. My pal Betsy came to the rescue with her entire series collection of “Gilmore Girls” (up through season 5 at the time). I had never seen a single episode (we were without cable then, so no incessant reruns for us on ABC Family!) Let me tell you, does it get any better than “Gilmore Girls” for escapist t.v.? I loved Stars Hollow and all the characters within it. (I still think Max Medina the teacher was Lorelai’s best match; what a waste!) By the time I had finished season 2, my husband was also pretty hooked. Don’t tell him I told you.
Occasionally I’d rent entire seasons of shows through Netflix, too. I have 
memories of getting “America’s Next Top Model” season one, as well as the first “Amazing Race”. My word, what a t.v. junkie I was. It was kinda nice, though. The baby was too young to understand what was going on so I didn’t need to worry about setting a bad example. I calculated how many hours I had at home with my child during maternity leave, and it was over 2,000!
When my son was born, my comfort t.v. was “Friends”. I owned all of the seasons by then, and I constantly had a dvd in our bedroom player ready to go for the middle-of-the-night feedings. I was a little unnerved the first few weeks after coming home from the hospital (both times), because I was so accustomed to the nurses coming in and checking on me so regularly. When I got home, I didn’t have that sense of security, so Ross & co. kept me feeling somewhat safe. It’s silly, I know, but it really helped. Hubby and I also watched all of “Alias” for the first few months after Eli was born.
What were your post-partum comfort t.v. shows? Have you seen “Sports Night”? Who did you root for: Luke, Max, or Christopher? Did your dvd player get a workout in those first few months home with baby?
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For me it was all about Dawson’s Creek!
FRIENDS is ALWAYS my comfort TV! I actually went into labor on a Thursday and would not go to the hospital until after FRIENDS was over!
FRIENDS for me too. I could watch an episode while I nursed the baby. And I had some PPD after my second baby so they were just what I needed to feel like I could survive. Just having those laughs somehow made my life better. If I ever meet any of the FRIENDS cast I will tell them that their show made me get through the tough early baby days. I have all 10 seasons and have watched them through several times. They still make me laugh every time. If we have another baby, I know they will be helpful again!
Alias was also helpful after we had our 2nd!
For me it was the ABCF reruns of Gilmore Girls everyday at 4:00! Also, ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ was just starting when I came home with Annabelle. Oh gosh, and whatever was on Nick at Night for those middle of the night feedings. I would watch The Cosby Show or The Fresh Prince.
I still miss Gilmore Girls! At the end of the series Rory went off to to be on Obama’s campaign trail, so I sometimes wonder what she would be doing now that he won. Its stupid – this person doesn’t even exist!
Alias, 24 and Arrested Development were my series (OK Dawn, former English teacher extraordinaire, what’s the plural of “series”? And did I put my last question mark in the right place, or should it be inside the quotes?) that I watched everyday. That, and tennis. Wimbledon w/ baby #1, US Open with #2. I love watching tennis. Or maybe it’s just Roger
Sharon, your hubby is probably a better source for these kinds of details.
I think the plural of “series” is “series”. And yes, your question mark was correctly placed. I love that you watched tennis. It reminds me of when Lucy was born – the ’06 winter olympics had just started and it was perfect family viewing when my folks were in town!
p.s. Sharon, AD is HI-larious!!!!!
Nick at Night was my best friend for the late late night feeding. I could always count on it for mindless TV that would make me laugh and not have infomercials on at 3am. I am HUGE fan of SATC so I watched that was in my DVD player most my afternoons.
For me,, I didn’t watch tv, I spent my time reading. I would turn the radio on low, put the kids down, and curl up on the couch with a good book. When the kids were awake, we were outside, and I had a book in hand.
My children now all love to read, and I still don’t turn the tv on until 6 pm, even though now I spend my time working at home.
Reading is a great way to relax.
When I first came home with my son last summer, I was watching a lot of shows that were saved on my TiVo. However, when my son was just 5 weeks old I suffered from pancreatitis. You can read about it here:
http://www.recommendeddailydose.com/?p=148
For the next 3 months I was in bed and in too much pain to read or even watch TV. I look forward to not missing the TV time with my next one along with the bonding that I missed while I was away.
With my daughter I would wake up to feed her and watch the Iraq War coverage on Fox news. With Jaydon we started watching all the House re-runs at night. I usually fall asleep during them and have to finish it the next day.
When Ben was born- Friends, Gilmore Girls, and ER
Now that Evan is here, I’m not as happy with TV choices. All I watch is ER. It will be so sad to see that go.
I love Gilmore Girls and got 2 seasons for my birthday this year (3, 5). I can’t wait to have all seasons in my library. They save me on my nights alone (my husband works 2pm-12am) during my “adoption pregnancy”. My husband keeps track of Gilmore Girls and when he walks into the room in the middle of an episode I get 20 questions and finally say “why don’t you watch this from the beginning, I don’t want to have to tell you the play by play.” I also currently enjoy Grey’s Anatomy and Private Practice on line. Its’ the drama that I like.