So where can we find connections once the congratulations cards stop dropping on the doormat? And what makes them stick?

For many, the answer is deceptively simple: WhatsApp. Mum after mum told me their group chats were lifelines – a space to swap bottle tips, vent in the middle of the night or just check in with someone else who gets it.

Chloë met her group – affectionately dubbed the ‘3am Gang’ – through an online post during pregnancy. “Twenty people replied. A few of us clicked, and it whittled down naturally,” she says. “We’ve been through two rounds of maternity leave together and celebrated weddings, babies and birthdays. We talk about the Kardashians, politics and restaurants. We’d be friends even if we didn’t have kids the same age.”

I found something similar. A baby class I joined when my daughter was three months old became a weekly highlight, and four of us still meet up some three-and-a-half years on. WhatsApp was key for me, too. One friend’s son is just a day older than my daughter, and we kept each other company through night feeds, checked in about weaning and swapped TikToks when staying awake felt impossible. Just knowing she was awake too made everything feel a little lighter.

Not all connections started in person. Siriol relied on Facebook groups to get through early weaning worries. Marion joined a chat for French mums in London and still meets up with them today. Tanya swiped on Peanut at 37 weeks pregnant and met her ‘mum bestie’, someone she now sees weekly and who has become her parenting anchor.

Others got creative. Anna set up a group called ‘Mat Leave Mondays’ that ballooned to 30 mums. “We’d meet up and plan our week – baby pub quizzes, swimming at the lido, rhyme time at the library. The WhatsApp group is still going strong years later.”

“Motherhood can be isolating – here’s what helped me feel less alone”