'i changed my baby 's name'- your stories please

Bit different, but I changed the spelling of my daughter's name from 'Annabelle' to 'Annabel', when she was 10 weeks old also, funnily enough! Both spellings are fine, but it was like a burning need inside of me and I couldn't rest until I'd changed it. I think because DP chose her name (and although I like it a lot, it is a compromise name for me), I had to do something to make it seem more like I had a hand in it, possibly? I can't explain it - she just IS a 'Bel' instead of a 'Belle'. Also, 'Annabelle' is far too girly for my lass, so it worked out well!

The downside of course, is teasing from friends and family and lots of baby cards addressed to the original spelling. But it's the kind of name that people will always spell wrong anyway, so there you go! I have to admit, I felt INSTANTLY better after the birth certificate was amended. I say go for Martha!

As an aside, I'm an Eloise (nn. Ellie) but for the first few days of my life I was called Eleanor! (Why didn't my parents just go with Ellie on it's own?!) I guess being an indecisive muppet runs in my family!

Hello, Just to let you know my daughter changed her own name when she was 6 years old!! I thought she was joking but it was actually the name we had always wanted but somehow ended up choosing another. (not PND but something like postnatal misery/ confusion).

It has stuck and all family and friends call her by her new name, nobody slips up or ever mentions her earlier name...after 6 years of calling her it! It was strange at first and a bit sad, like a tiny bereavement, but I am really happy as it is much more right for her.

If you don't do it you will always want to of course, and although I did not choose it, as Bella says I felt massive relief when she changed it. It is important and something joyful (I do understand it may not feel joyful to you at the moment).

I am sure it is really difficult for you with PND and I wonder if it is hard to trust your instincts but if Martha feels right, go for it. This may be a bit of a naff idea but have you thought of keeping Anna too as a middle name - she may want to use that when she's older.

I actually love the name Martha and the sliding rhyme of her surname actually adds to it, for me. Good luck with your recovery too.

You poor thing. I really feel for you.

Right, just to dissect a bit. Firstly, I don't know the legalities of changing a name that's already registered where you are (you said you were in a different country).

Secondly, it seems to me that Martha is the 'special' name, the one that pulls at your heartstrings. This is what happened to me, I 'felt' something about name X, but it was one of three on a shortlist, and when it came to deciding my OH gave me a (not very good) reason for not choosing X, so I went with something else. He chose to tell me the reason a couple of days after giving birth, by the way, when I was traumatised and bonkers. The name we went with was a bit more 'out there' and I could never say it with confidence. I dreaded people asking me her name. I too just called her 'the baby'.

In the end DP just wanted to do what would make me less anxious, also there were no other children to consider.

I don't think the argument about it being unfair on your DDs washes, to be honest, the older one will get used to the change and DD2 doesn't know anything about herself yet! Presuming your DH actually likes the name Martha I'm sure his annoyance is due to being worried about what people will think. You just have to front it out if you change it, I'm afraid.

So, should you change it? FWIW, you seem to have an emotional attachment to Martha, and that's what you thought of when she arrived. Anna is a beautiful name, it was on our long list, and Anna Parsons is lovely. Martha Parsons to me is more memorable and more impactful, precisely because of the rhyming thing.

In the end the only way I could move on was to change it. I sometimes do think about the reason DP gave, but for me that's less important than the way the name makes me feel. Hope that helps.

Ps my maiden name had that same rhyminess and I hated it

If you really want to change it you should, but fwiw I think if your Dh is not keen, you're not totally sure and the fact that Martha parsons is a bit 'maaa paaaa' I'd keep Anna - it's a really lovely name.

Hi Rachel,

I changed DD's middle name, but kept her first name. I did suffer from PND but I don't think that it was a sympton - having said that, I totally understand how important it would be to feel as though you had thr right name for your DD.

It is really easy to do, all you have to do is take yourself down to the registry office with the original birth certificate, and change it.

I think you should change her name. Your DH will get over it very quickly, 10 weeks is very young and people will forget that you had originally called her something else. If it something that seriously bothers you, it could stay with you for the rest of your life and I think it's important to point that out to your DH. Things that happened while I was suffering from PND really stayed with me, and I found it very hard to 'let go' - there are things from that time, which could have really tainted our marriage / relationships with other people, if we hadn't put them to bed. This could be one of those things, for you. Does that make sense at all?

For what it's worth, I think Martha Poppy Parsons sounds lovely.

I did! Felt better straight away, having agonised about it for ages. It just wasn't the right name, I'd felt pressured to pick something but was so mental with PND I chose the wrong one from our shortlist.

We ended up with an amended birth certificate and a bit of teasing from friends (about which I have zero sense of humour) but otherwise the relief outweighed the negatives.

I haven't done this but didn't want to leave your post unanswered. Why do you want to change your baby's name?

10 weeks is still pretty young, I think its no problem legally up to one year.