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    How to co-parent: Co-parenting tips for new parents

    What is co-parenting? This modern method of raising children emphasises shared responsibility and equal involvement from both parents. Whether together or separated, co-parents work as a team by dividing tasks like nursery or school runs, meal planning, feeding or play time, while maintaining a consistent and loving environment for the child.


    But learning how to co-parent isn’t always easy, which is where our guide comes in. Learn the benefits of co-parenting, discover co-parenting tips, and create a wholesome childhood for your little one.

    What does co-parenting mean for families?

     

    Positive co-parenting can mean different things to different families. In a house where the mum is returning to work after maternity leave, co-parenting is a way to fairly divide tasks between both working parents, ensuring everyone’s needs are met. For others, it’s a way for parents to continue raising their children together after they’ve separated.

     

    It’s well-known that the parenting style can significantly affect a child’s behaviour and actions as they grow up.1 For instance, children with parents who work well together tend to have more positive physiological and social traits, improving their overall well-being.2 This is true even when the parents are separated, highlighting just how vital co-parenting is for your little one.

     

    The benefits of co-parenting are also important for mums and dads. By sharing responsibilities, it gives both parents an equal opportunity to be involved in the child’s life, but also to rest.

     

    If your child has football practice on Saturday mornings, for example, you can take turns driving them. This gives you both the chance to have an active role in their love of football, and a chance to have a lie-in on the weekend. Win-win!

    How to co-parent successfully: Some essential tips

     

    Positive co-parenting doesn’t always come naturally, especially when you’re separated. To make it work, it’s good to learn from the co-parenting advice of others and prepare yourself for the experience with some tips.

     

    Your first step might be to sit down together and talk about ‘what is co-parenting?’ and what you both hope to get out of the experience. Outline your ideas of positive co-parenting so that you’re both on the same page.

     

    After answering ‘what does co-parenting mean?’, explore these tips on how to co-parent successfully:

     

    • Find your preferred methods of communication, be that face-to-face, phone calls, texts, or emails
    • Use a shared calendar for all your child’s events, like play dates and school events
    • Be flexible with schedules so that you can both change plans to suit your commitments
    • Don’t argue in front of your child
    • If you can’t communicate with each other, choose a third person (like a grandparent or family friend) to act as your go-between

     

    You might also need to set boundaries when learning how to co-parent, such as agreeing to give at least one day's notice before rearranging a plan

    How to co-parent a newborn

     

    For some parents, putting co-parenting advice into practice and sharing tasks begins as soon as the baby is born.

     

    Newborn co-parenting is a brilliant way to reduce the strain of those early days. For example, when breastfeeding, mums can use a breast pump to express so that the non-breastfeeding parent can bottle feed the baby. This stops mum from being the only one able to feed the baby and helps the other parent bond.

     

    You can make co-parenting a newborn simpler with the Philips Avent Electric Breast Pump, designed with Natural Motion Technology to get milk flowing quickly. 8 stimulations modes and 16 expression modes help you find the rhythm that’s right for you, while the cordless design enables hand-free pumping so that you can make a cuppa, do your hair, or look after your newborn all while you pump.

     

    When exploring how to co-parent a newborn, other co-parenting tips include:

     

    • Outlining your parenting style together – you’re a team after all
    • Making decisions collaboratively, such as whether your newborn will be bottle-fed and plans for safe sleep
    • Establishing a routine for feeding, sleeping, and nappy changes
    • Attending hospital and paediatric appointments together (where possible)
    • Ensuring both parents have time to bond individually with the baby

     

    It’s a great idea to learn together, too. Before your baby is born, make sure you both know newborn essentials, like how to put a newborn to sleep safely and how to change a nappy.

    Co-parenting tips for great communication

     

    Great communication within families is linked to a whole range of benefits for children, including improving their overall health and wellbeing.3 Co-parenting advice often encourages excellent communication, but what does that mean, and how can you achieve it?

     

    In simple terms, to see the full benefits of co-parenting, you and your co-parent should be honest, kind, and empathetic when you speak to each other. Active listening is essential, too, in which you:

     

    • Make eye contact
    • Don’t interrupt
    • Give them your full attention (no phones allowed!)
    • Show you’ve listened by repeating key points

     

    Whether you’re co-parenting a newborn or navigating going back to work, learning how to co-parent helps both parents take an active role from the get-go. While it might be tricky to get the hang of at first, remember that good communication and plenty of patience pay off. You’ve got this.

    Young mother feeds her baby with a Philips Avent bottle.

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