--- title: "Dear Abby: New mother asks how to support struggling friend" publication: "MediaBias News" url: "https://mediabias.news/health/dear-abby-new-mother-asks-how-to-support-struggling-friend" api: "https://mediabias.news/api/v1/stories/dear-abby-new-mother-asks-how-to-support-struggling-friend" markdown: "https://mediabias.news/health/dear-abby-new-mother-asks-how-to-support-struggling-friend.md" audio: "https://mediabias.news/api/audio/dear-abby-new-mother-asks-how-to-support-struggling-friend" category: "Health" area: "United States" published: "2026-08-23T13:45:43.459Z" source_reported: "2026-08-23T11:00:00.000Z" updated: "2026-08-23T13:45:43.459Z" trust_score: 42 critic_score: 69 hype_score: 15 assessment_type: "coverage-and-source-reporting-analysis" fact_check_status: "not-performed" coverage_measured: "2026-08-23T13:59:11.052Z" --- # Dear Abby: New mother asks how to support struggling friend *A new mother sought advice on how to balance her own positive experience with her friend's postpartum difficulties.* **Scores for the source reporting** (0-100, assessing the original journalism this article was written from, not this write-up): - Trust 42 of 100, higher is better. Trust low (42) because only one outlet gave a full report with a named questioner and no independent corroboration. - Craft 69 of 100, higher is better. Critic moderate (69) as the piece quotes the asker and Dear Abby, keeping facts separate. - Hype 15 of 100, lower is better. Hype low (15); headline matches content without exaggeration. Scored by MediaBias News; method at https://mediabias.news/methodology. **The short version** - A new mother is concerned about her best friend, who has become distant, anxious, and depressed since giving birth. - The friend is struggling with motherhood and breastfeeding, while the asker is adjusting well and finding it natural. - Dear Abby advised the new mother to encourage her friend to consult an obstetrician about potential hormonal imbalances. - The advice column also addressed a separate query about a retired husband who drives friends to the airport, causing frustration. A new mother sought advice from the Dear Abby column regarding her best friend, who is experiencing significant emotional distress two months after childbirth. The asker stated that she and her friend became pregnant around the same time and initially felt blessed to share the experience. However, the friend has become distant, anxious, and depressed since her daughter's birth, presenting a stark contrast to the asker's own positive adjustment to motherhood. The new mother expressed concern that her friend perceives her own happiness and positive experiences with breastfeeding as rubbing it in her face. She asked how to support her friend while still being honest about her own joyful experience. Dear Abby suggested that the friend's struggles might stem from a physiological cause, such as a hormonal imbalance after childbirth, and urged the asker to encourage her friend to speak with an obstetrician. Abby also advised the asker to find other people with whom to share her positive experiences for a while, to be more sensitive to her friend's current state. ## Coverage Disagreements The reports do not present any factual disagreements. All six outlets that ran the story covered the first query to Dear Abby about the new mothers. ## What the coverage left out None of the right-rated reports ran this story. The left and centre-rated reports, which were primarily digests, did not include the second letter to Dear Abby about the husband driving friends to the airport, which was present in the full report from the Inquirer. ## Who covered it Shares of the 7 covering outlets with a published leaning rating: - Left: 43% (3) - Centre: 57% (4) - Right: 0% (0) 0 of 7 covering outlets carried no usable leaning rating and were excluded from those percentages. Coverage measured 2026-08-23T13:59:11.052Z. **Coverage watch:** developing. Checked 9 times; 0 checks found a material change. Most recently checked 2026-08-23T16:00:33.355Z. ## How the sides framed it ### Left - The left-rated reports focused on the central dilemma of the first letter: a new mother's struggle to support a friend experiencing postpartum anxiety and depression while navigating her own positive adjustment to motherhood. The Inquirer, as the only full report, also included a second, separate letter to Dear Abby concerning a retired husband who repeatedly drives friends to the airport, causing frustration for his wife. The Chicago Sun Times and lehighvalleylive digests focused solely on the first letter's theme of differing postpartum experiences. ### Centre - The centre-rated reports highlighted the contrast between the two new mothers' experiences. Michigan Live, Mass Live, and New Hampshire Union Leader digests all focused on the asker's question about whether she must temper her own joy because her friend is struggling. These digests concentrated on the emotional and relational aspects of the first letter, framing it as a question of balancing personal happiness with a friend's difficulties. ### Right No separate framing summary. **Provisional coverage gap:** right. The watch is not closed, so this is not yet a settled blindspot finding. ## Factuality profile of the covering outlets These are published factuality ratings of the outlets, not a verdict on whether this story or its claims are true. - high: 5 - veryHigh: 2 ## Verification scope This page compares coverage and scores the source reporting. It is not a ClaimReview verdict on whether the underlying event or claim is true. ## Original reporting this was written from - [Chicago Sun Times](https://chicago.suntimes.com/dear-abby/2026/08/23/dearabby-today-dear-abby-friends-mental-states-differ-wildly-after-childbirth) — Dear Abby: Friends' Mental States Differ Wildly After Childbirth - [Michigan Live](https://mlive.com/advice/2026/08/dear-abby-must-i-tamp-down-my-joy-at-being-a-new-mom-because-my-friend-is-struggling.html) — Dear Abby: Must I tamp down my joy at being a new mom because my friend is struggling? - [Mass Live](https://masslive.com/advice/2026/08/dear-abby-these-besties-had-babies-at-about-the-same-time-but-their-experiences-are-very-different.html) — Dear Abby: These besties had babies at about the same time, but their experiences are very different - [lehighvalleylive](https://lehighvalleylive.com/advice/2026/08/dear-abby-must-i-mute-my-excitement-as-a-new-mom-to-protect-my-struggling-friend.html) — Dear Abby: Must I mute my excitement as a new mom to protect my struggling friend? - [Penn Live](https://pennlive.com/advice/2026/08/dear-abby-must-i-mute-my-excitement-as-a-new-mom-to-protect-my-struggling-friend.html) — Dear Abby: Must I mute my excitement as a new mom to protect my struggling friend? - [Inquirer](https://inquirer.com/life/dear-abby-advice-column-20260823.html) — Dear Abby | Friends’ mental states differ wildly after childbirth - [New Hampshire Union Leader](https://unionleader.com/nh/lifestyles/abby-friends-mental-states-differ-wildly-after-childbirth/article_d12b820f-f689-4bab-a4c2-403941221405.html) — Abby: Friends' mental states differ wildly after childbirth ## Questions **What advice did Dear Abby give the new mother?** Dear Abby advised the new mother to encourage her friend to consult an obstetrician about potential hormonal imbalances that can cause anxiety and depression after childbirth. Abby also suggested the new mother be more sensitive to her friend's struggles by sharing her own positive experiences with other people for a while. **Why is the new mother concerned about her friend?** The new mother is concerned because her best friend has become distant, anxious, and depressed since giving birth to her daughter two months ago. This is in contrast to the asker, who is adjusting well to motherhood and finding it comes naturally to her. **Did all the outlets cover the same letters from Dear Abby?** No, the Inquirer published a full report that included two letters to Dear Abby. The other five outlets published digests that focused only on the first letter concerning the two new mothers. Therefore, the second letter about the husband driving friends to the airport was not covered by the centre-rated outlets or the other left-rated digests. --- MediaBias News — https://mediabias.news. Reproduced from https://mediabias.news/health/dear-abby-new-mother-asks-how-to-support-struggling-friend. Please cite as: MediaBias News, "Dear Abby: New mother asks how to support struggling friend", https://mediabias.news/health/dear-abby-new-mother-asks-how-to-support-struggling-friend