Nicole Richie worries about life as a new mum

Friends of Nicole Richie are worried that the socialite is finding being a new mum harder than she thought.

Nicole gave birth to daughter Harlow Winter Kate Madden on 11th January and made her first public appearance at the weekend: Nicole and fiance Joel Madden attended a private party in West Hollywood to celebrate the birthday of her manager, Benny Medina but other guests at the event said she was withdrawn for most of the evening.

A source told OK magazine: “Nicole’s situation is reminiscent of that episode of Sex and the City where Miranda wants to be a good mom but isn’t sure how to do it exactly.”

A second source added: “Being a first time mum is tough on anyone but Nicole is very aware that she’ll be raising Harlow in the public eye and every mistake will be scrutinised by all and sundry. She doesn’t want to follow in Britney’s footsteps by any means.

She is also said to be keen to lose her pregnancy weight as soon as possible and her choice of dress for the weekend’s event showed that she’s already on the way to regaining her well-known svelte physique.

Sources told OK she’s losing weight the old fashioned way - good old calorie counting: “She keeps a food diary. She writes down everything she eats and figures out where she can cut calories.”

“She tries to joke about counting her caloric intake, but everyone knows she’s very serious about getting her body back.”