When I became a brand new mom, I was focused on exactly what you would expect: late night feeds, googling things like “is this normal?” at 2 am. My daughter was three months old. She was perfect. We were tired. Life felt chaotic but beautiful.

Insurance? Not even on my radar.

Then one morning my husband woke up and his face was so swollen it did not look like him. He had started snoring recently, which honestly felt like a normal “welcome to adulthood” symptom. But this was different. His face kept swelling. It got scary enough that he went to the ER.

A few tests later, doctors found a mass in his chest pressing on his vena cava and his heart. They suspected cancer. After a biopsy and a PET scan, the diagnosis came: non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

He was 27.

You do not picture cancer at 27 (especially not this type). You picture career plans and arguing about which stroller to buy. You do not picture oncologists. And yet there we were.

Here is the part no one talks about.

When you have a newborn, you think about diapers, sleep schedules, and maybe college savings. You do not think about life insurance. You do not think about disability insurance. You definitely do not think about “what happens if one of us cannot work?”

We were not wealthy. We were just starting out. And because we had not set up insurance beforehand, we learned a very hard lesson: once someone has a cancer diagnosis, getting affordable life insurance becomes nearly impossible for years.

Years… yup!

The only policies offered to him had premiums so high they felt like a second mortgage. So we went through years without the protection we should have had. And when you are raising a small child, that lack of safety net sits in the back of your mind.

Now I am that woman. The one who asks every pregnant friend, “Have you thought about insurance yet?” I know. I sound like a mom version of a Karen.

Because here is the uncomfortable truth.

You think you are young and invincible. You think serious illness is something that happens “later” or to “other people.” My husband was healthy. No major symptoms. No warning signs we would have recognized. And still, life had other plans.

Having a baby changes everything. Suddenly it is not just about you anymore. If something happens to one parent, the other is left not only with heartbreak but also with financial responsibility: Mortgage, rent, food, childcare etc. It does not pause because you are grieving.

Insurance is not a fun topic. It does not come wrapped in cute packaging. But it is one of the most loving things you can put in place for your family.

If you are expecting, or you just brought your newborn home, ask yourself a few simple questions:

If one of us could not work tomorrow, how would we pay our bills?

If one of us passed away, could the other parent stay in the house?

Do we have life insurance? Disability insurance? Health insurance that actually covers what we need?

And if the answer is “I do not know,” that is your sign to look into it now. Not next year. Not when things feel more stable. Now.

Because the best time to get insurance is when you are healthy. The second best time is today.

I would love to say this post is dramatic and rare. I wish it were. But life has a way of surprising us in ways we never expect. Preparing does not mean living in fear. It means building peace of mind.

So yes, this is my official “Karen mom” moment.

You there. With the adorable newborn and the sleep deprivation …

Have you thought about insurance yet?