When my husband and I brought our baby girl home from the hospital in May, we were flooded with well-meaning messages of support and friends asking us what we needed. As someone who is uncomfortable with asking for help, I would always reply with, 'We're all good, thank you!' rather than say: 'Actually, we are out of milk' or 'We've run out of bin bags.'

I was so exhausted and sleep-deprived that every decision felt like an impossible task, and even with an empty fridge and a hungry tummy, I could not decide what I wanted, let alone ask someone to bring it.

The absolute greatest gift we received was friends who would drop by with a home-cooked meal, a loaf of bread or a hot coffee. Family who would come and sit on my sofa for hours just so I felt like I wasn't doing it alone. The people

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