When you’re sick, overwhelmed or newly postpartum, there are few things as comforting as food. When someone drops off a meal, it’s like a life raft in a sea of exhaustion and a reminder that you’re not alone. So what to bring a new mom, new parents or someone who’s ill? In a recent informal Instagram survey asking that question, a few conflicting opinions and several consistent themes emerged. Here’s a look at the results.

It’s a time-honored tradition to bring meals to new parents or people who need support. In fact, the idea is the main subject of The First Forty Days (affiliate link), a book Mother Mag says is geared especially towards the healing postpartum period for new moms. According to the review, this book incorporates “the wisdom … in which a new mother is pampered and cared for, sometimes isolated from the distractions of the outside world, so she can solely focus on rest and recovery for herself and the new baby.”

No matter what you decide about what to bring a new mom, bringing over some sort of meal is usually a welcome favor. Why? As one Instagram respondent said this week, “That postpartum period is HARD. All the hormones, the recovery, still getting to know your little one–it’s a lot. And having someone take care of this need for you means so much.”Read More