What’s your NCT group like?

[HopefulRose]

Just interested in hearing other people’s experiences really. We did the NCT course in February, the women are nice but it does feel highly competitive. Wondering if it’s down to the characters in the group or just the nature of the thing of putting X amount of women together?

If you did an nct group, how long did you all stay in touch for? Was it a positive or negative experience and did it help shape your identity as a parent?

asking because I now worry about things I’m not sure I would have done without it however I’ve also had some fun times as a result of it and have felt less alone.

12 years and all still going strong. We are all similar age and all professional working mums and the husbands all get on well too so that must have helped. Plus most of us aren't from the local area so didn't have many established friends outside.

Ours was great initially. A little bit of competitiveness but it washed over me a bit as my DD was very poorly at birth and so has made her own way in life. So i always felt like we had a bit of a different track anyway.

I would say that it has markedly dropped off since everyone went back to work though. So if we stay in touch, then that's great, but equally its fine if it drifts apart.

I'm only in touch with one mum from my NCT group and I only see her very occasionally. I liked my group ok and we did stay in touch at the beginning. A few of us (me included) moved away within a year of the babies being born and didn't really keep in touch. We met up for lunch a few times till the babies were about 3 or 4 but not so much after that, but that was partly covid.

I'm glad we did it as having people in the same boat to message on WhatsApp at 3 in the morning was great. I'd often have a little chat at that time. Someone would usually be up!

I made better friends at baby groups.

I found the NCT group to be a bit much. It was full of competitiveness and trying to be super mums with dream babies. I ended up feeling a bit of a failure for not managing the 1,2,3 nap routines, magic sleep training plans and baby led weaning stuff ( there’s no way I was making home made baby friendly houmous )

I found more my type of people at baby groups and while chatting at nursery pick ups.

It was a lifeline during maternity leave but we drifted apart after we all went back to work.

Only saw them a few times in person due to lockdown (all classes on zoom). When one of them posted " Mine sleeps for 12hrs every night 😂" on our WhatsApp chat I fantasised about killing her and then muted the group.

Mine was 8 years ago but pretty good. On FB with most of them and keep up with what the "babies" are now up to. Going to Longleat soon with one of them for the Festival of Lights which will be amazing :)

I think I got unlucky, we chose the dates that worked best for us which turned out to be out in the sticks a bit and there were only two other couples. We did get the option of moving to a different course and I really wish we had. They were very different to us and not people we would otherwise have been friends with and with it being such a small group it just really didn’t work. We met up a couple of times and messaged at the start of lockdown but not heard from them since. I’m Facebook friends with one and she messaged asking me for some advice and we chatted a bit but when I suggested a meet up she didn’t reply. It makes me a bit sad as all my friends seemed to have nice NCT groups who they still chat to now and again even if they don’t see each other loads even though their kids are older. I never really clicked with anyone at baby/toddler groups either, and I think I need to make a bit more effort with nursery mums!

Our DCs in our group have just turned 21 and we still see each other regularly- and the kids socialise too. Mind you, we’re down to three of us now from seven as prolly have moved away.