Life with a newborn is a life in flux: you can be freaked out and overwhelmed one moment and bored to tears the next, all while likely experiencing the deepest and most profound exhaustion of your life. It’s the best of times, it’s the worst of times (as they say), but it’s also a great time to make friends with your couch—best friends—and to settle in for a good many long hours of newborn hangout time. Baby will feed, sleep, snuggle and bond, and you will spend lots of time watching that beautiful face and holding those tiny hands, but what about after? You know, after you’ve done the same thing for days and days and nights and nights on end and all you’d like is just a little non-baby entertainment, for goodness sake?
Why, TV of course! Don’t resist; there’ll be a time for reading later, after you’ve had more than three hours of sleep, after you’ve cleared the new-baby haze out of your mind and found a semblance of balance in this new, weird world you’ve created. It’ll be okay.
Postpartum binge-watching is a nearly foolproof way to get a little relief, but it may pose a bit of a challenge even for a TV junkie, because, like lots of parents, you might develop an absolute aversion to shows you used to love: Game of Thrones (too bloody—we’ve had enough of that), Handmaid’s Tale, Stranger Things and anything else with kids in peril, documentaries of almost any kind, crime shows featuring murdered families and broken dreams, doomsday news shows, shows that are serious, shows that are utterly pointless … it’s amazing how much you will find distasteful now that you’re responsible for an actual human life.
What to watch? As a new mama of three with an eight-week-old on my chest at all times (real talk now: I’m typing this on my phone with my left hand while my other kids bash around a giant balloon shaped like a T-Rex), I’ve once again become an authority on new-baby binge watching. So here’s what’s been on at my house, along with a few recommendations from other friends with fresh babies.
For something that resonates …
Parenthood. Four adult siblings take on their lives as parents, spouses and employees. It took three babies for me to finally check this out, and it was immediately clear why it came so highly recommended; it’s an uplifting testament to the crazy life that ensues when you’re trying to raise good humans and live for yourself.
Bob’s Burgers. I absolutely adore Bob’s, perhaps because like Bob himself, my husband runs his own business and experiences the same setbacks. Or perhaps it’s because Linda (the mom) is so unflappably positive and undeniably hilarious. Or maybe it’s because their three children seem as odd as mine are. Really it’s just amazing to watch this family love each other so well, even while I’m laughing at their absurdity. Try it.
Catastrophe. They didn’t plan on getting pregnant, and sometimes their arguments about life and parenting cut uncomfortably close, but I find Rob and Sharon’s relationship to be really engaging as they learn to work through their differences. Also, it’s hysterical.
For something transportive…
Desperate Housewives. Ok, it’s soapy. And yes, the plot does get quite ridiculous as things move along. But watching it takes me off my couch and into a privileged world, where the friendships are constant (if not combustible), the houses gleaming, the love affairs delicious.
Downton Abbey. A prettier, even soapier Desperate Housewives set in pre-WWI England. Can you feel me?
Killing Eve. Eve is a spy, Villanelle is a serial killer (no kid peril, I promise), and as the two women track each other across the world they slowly become obsessed in a way you wouldn’t expect. You’ll will want to watch every episode of this, actress Sandra Oh’s indisputable masterpiece of a performance.
For something uplifting…
Doc Martin. Take up shop in a tiny Cornwall village and watch as a big-city doctor with a blood phobia tries to get along. So cute, so charming, such a lovely place to spend a few hours while the baby cluster feeds.
The Great British Bake-Off. And speaking of adorable British shows, if you haven’t yet looked into GBBO, now is the perfect time! Even if you don’t know what self-raising flour is or don’t care one bit whether someone’s fruit tart has a soggy bottom, you will adore witnessing the kindness and conscientious joy oozing from each contestant. They wiz through some incredible baking challenges too, and all the while you’ll laugh at the hosts’ precious British humor and wry jabs. It’s so much fun.
Curb Your Enthusiasm. Fans of Seinfeld will already know the hilarity that is Larry David’s Curb Your Enthusiasm, rife as it is with weird, cringe-worthy, Seinfeld-y situations and humor. I always find it to be a tonic for normalcy; as in, watching Curb reminds me that regular life is still ongoing despite my house arrest on the couch. My babies might be wreaking havoc around me, but there will come a day when I’ll be out in the world again, maybe even by myself. Maybe?
Shelley DeWees is a three-time Willow client who spends her days chasing her preschooler son and toddler daughter around her home in South St Paul. Her most recent addition, another boy, arrived just this past July! Shelley also loves going to workout classes (when she’s not enormously pregnant or freshly postpartum) and is an avid reader.