AIBU to be apprehensive about motherhood

[Freudianslap]

I'm due to have my first in Sept and as it approaches I am starting to get bouts of sheer panic - will I be a 'good' mum? How will I cope without the intellectual challenges of work? Will I be lonely (and bored) at home all day on my own? What I just don't know what to do? Will I totally lose my identity? That sort of stuff...

Yet whenever I mention this to anyone I seem to be met with looks of horror. It's making me feel like a terrible person that I am not in this perpetual blissful pregnancy bubble that people seem to think I should be in. It was all topped off this morning by my DH - his response to my concerns was 'well there's nothing you can do about it now so just deal with it'. Which I suppose is true but wasn't really helpful.


Don't get me wrong, on the whole I am excited about this baby and the new challenges he represents but am I really being so unreasonable to have a few doubts?

[pudtat]

No, but you will in all likelihood be fine. I was (am?) the archetypal career gal, it really defined me. Had never been at all broody or maternal. But my 4.5 month old DS is a delight and utterly fascinating. We live rurally, so I spend a lot of time home alone with him, but it really is ok. There are lots of books, blogs, you tube clips and indeed mn with ideas and advice for things you can do with him. And most of it is common sense really. Congratulations, and good luck. You'll do great!

[Cherriesarelovely]

What you are feeling is really normal and common. Having a baby is amazing but it is s huge change and can be a challenge. No one can tell you how it's going to be for you though, my experience was that the first few weeks were very hard work and exhausting but things came together after that. Keep posting here and people will be happy to listen and respond. Good luck and congratulations!

[MrsKeithRichards]

Congratulations! You'll be fine. Your world and life will change, no doubt about it, but you are under no obligation to morph into some ubiquitous mummy. You are still you and you'll be a mum too.

[ThePowerof3]

I think it is better to be the way you are, I had that perfect bubble with my first pregnancy then had raging anxiety when the baby was born and felt like a total failure as I hadn't even considered it'd be anything other than perfect

[Freudianslap]

Thank you, that's just what I needed to hear. Why is it so hard for people in RL to offer similar words of encouragement??

[WandaDoff]

No, you are having doubts & worries because you CARE & want to do a good job.

The first few weeks will be a total culture shock, if it's your first, but you'll muddle through I should imagine, we all do

[Fakebook]

Who is giving you looks of horror? Do they have children? Your feelings are completely normal and I'm going through the same again with my third! You never feel you're good enough until they come along and then everything just clicks into place. Don't worry.

[Freudianslap]

Kate Middleton hasn't helped - people keep going on and on about her and when I say that quite frankly I am not really that interested in her or her baby they look at me like I'm crazy...

[KateCroydon]

You sound sane. I might get shouted at by parents of high needs babies here, but just in case you have a cheerful soul who sleeps well you could plan for something to keep your brain ticking over - write short stories, plan a business, etc... Also, the endless early breastfeeds are great for reading.

[Freudianslap]

fakebook - yes it tends to be people with children or even worse are the looks from other pregnant women. My antenatal class was a nightmare! Nobody seemed to have any worries at all aside from which pram to get and whether to paint the nursery yellow or blue.

[FrauMoose]

I think there is a big - too big - industry around motherhood. The truth is that abies are programmed to survive. You feed them, change them, give them affection and some stimulus. It is not rocket science. If it was the human race would not have survived. Babies give you feedback so you find out what they like and need. You can see them growing and developing. You know when they're happy.

I think (whisper) small babies can be quite boring. I found it absolutely vital to keep friendships going, preferably with people who had some understanding about babies, but didn't just want to have baby-centred conversation. I wanted to keep my brain alive, and I wanted to keep a toehold in the world of work. It is also very important to have a supportive, engaged partner! (Not to say that people don't do a terrific job sometimes without a partner, or with a largely absent one.)

[thismousebites]

We all had jitters over first one so it is normal.
When little one arrives you will be fine honestly
It will change your life but only for the bbetter

[pudtat]

Given my waters broke while painting the nursery, I'd say just get stuff as together as you can and prepar for the first couple of weeks being a rollercoaster you think you'll never manage to ride. But you will, and it doesn't last forever. Have you got some DVD box sets?

[Purpleprickles]

Everything you are feeling is totally normal and I felt the same when I was expecting ds. Be warned when you have the baby lots of other new mums will claim motherhood is all cuddles and smiles when the reality can be a bit different. My advice would be to go to lots of baby groups, find new mummy friends who can be honest and share all the joys of motherhood and the hard bits too. Also post on here, lots of support for new mums on mumsnet. I found the initial six months a mixture of pleasure and total stress and was really helped by these forums and two friends from an NCT class who could laugh and cry with me.

[thebody]

how strange of your dh and friends!

it's perfectly normal to be apprehensive and much more sensible than being on cloud 9.

it's a huge life changing roller oater so hang on and enjoy the highs and expect some lows.

can I add, giving birth hurts a lot, don't be a heroine, if you need drugs have them!! //😉

and for good measure kick your dh in the bollocks next time he's so dismissive and day you chatted online to moms who wanted him to see 'yes labour is coming and there's nothing he can do about it now so you thought he ought to share the experience' //😄

[pebspop]

I felt like this and now I have a three month old. I have surprised myself how well I have taken to my new role. I dont mind getting up in the night or changing nappies its all become normal life to me.

I have managed to fill my week with groups, classes and meeting nct friends tbh they have become my new 'collegues' and are filling the gap of not working and being in an office full of people all day.

it took a while to get to thIs stage. I remember thinking what have I done! in the first couple of weeks but the sleepless nights have settled down and for now things are good. I am expecting some fun around six months when I start weaning!

[Lonecatwithkitten]

It is really normal to feel apprehensive, particularly I think if you have a successful career and probably quite high professional standards. I found it helped me to massively lower my standards for bring up DD in the first few months the fact that we were both still alive at the end of each day was my main goal. Now happy and healthy are the main ones. I do continue to push myself ridiculous hard in my professional life.

[purrpurr]

You sound a lot more down to earth than those worrying about what colour to paint the nursery. Your concerns are all valid and normal. In the latter stages of my pregnancy I researched things I could get out and do with my newborn - baby swimming, sensory classes, mother and baby groups - then I saved it all in a folder on my PC and forgot about it until my DD was 8 weeks old. She is now 10 weeks and I'm going to one of the classes I researched with her this morning. Use your head - small babies can be boring, and it is ok to be bored, just plan ahead if you can and find out what is on in your area so when you're sleep deprived you don't have to think about it too much :)

Congratulations!

[MurderOfGoths]

YANBU, it's totally normal to worry! I don't know anyone who didn't, and we've all turned out just fine :) So will you.

[SkinnybitchWannabe]

Yanbu, I think it's normal to be feeling that way, afterall we can't send then back once they're out! I felt the same when I had my first ds. Then again with my second ds and again with my third.
Good luck and congrats xx

[Xiaoxiong]

You sound just like me, and now I am pregnant with DS2 I feel the same way all over again. In fact I just had a freakout about having another child, basically "omg what have we done to have another child this is a disaster and will ruin all our lives". DH and my friends on my post-natal thread from DS1 kindly talked me down from the ledge and said everyone has those kinds of worries.

I think it's a real shame that people around you are just telling you to get on with it. It's a huge and irreversible life change - it's normal to have worries and wobbles and want to plan ahead for the big stuff.

I think there are some people that concentrate on things like the nursery and the pram as distraction/deflection methods, head in the sand because they don't want to deal with the big hard stuff.

[DreamingOfTheMaldives]

Frediunslap - I am so relieved to read your post, as I am due in 4 weeks and have also been having similar periods of complete panic. I worry that I won't be able to cope with the baby, that I won't be able to handle the lack of sleep (I feel really rough if I don't get 8 hours a night), that I won't love the baby, that it won't like me and that I will just end up resenting it for the changes it will bring to my life.

I haven't told anyone other than my DH that I feel this way, although my Mum and sister both realise that I haven't taken to pregnancy and the idea of motherhood easily, despite the baby being completely planned.

I feel bad for feeling this way, particularly as I had a miscarriage last year which was awful for both of us, but this feeling of fear is never far away, even though I do sometimes feel excited. If I try to get organised then 'the fear' is even stronger, so have spent a lot of this pregnancy with my head in the sand - hence now having loads to do and buy.

That other pregnant women seem to be, as you say, in a blissful pregnancy bubble really doesn't help - I often wonder why I am the only one screaming "stop the ride I want to get off." But then again, perhaps they are, it's just that like me, they are screaming it silently.

Just wanted you to know that you are not alone.

[MTBMummy]

Freudian - I think it's completely normal, DD is 3 and I'm expecting my second and I still feel the same way.

The problem with being a mum is that we put ourselves under too much pressure to be the perfect mum society portrays and expects from us.

No, we're not all happy, we're not all perfect, we don't all have spotless houses but we do the best we can.

[letthemdrinkrose]

I was terrified, for the same reasons, and although I love dd to bits I still worry that I'm not doing a good enough job with her! However, I try to make myself just relax and enjoy my time with her and when I do I can see that she's a happy and contended little person and this must be partly down to me! I also had the fear about taking time off work, and expected to be desperate to get back, but as it turns out I'm now dreading my return and know I'm going to miss her hugely when I go back. I'm even considering trying for another (haven't told DH yet ) as I've enjoyed the experience much more than I ever thought I would.

[jeanmiguelfangio]

Congratulations!! Personally I'm a bit wary of anyone who says they aren't at all anxious about having a baby, I think you are perfectly normal. My DD is 5 months and I was scared, getting the hang of it now, def a change but each step is exciting and fun good luck you will be fine