...to not want to call anyone "Dear"?

[Panjita79]

Who started that nonsense?

Maybe I'll stop cringing when I get used to it.

I think lots of people seem to think it's full of who women who just coo about their little darlings and have erotic dreams about casseroles and knitting patterns.

And then sometimes there's a shocked article about the excessive use of the word 'cunt' on Mumsnet.

I don't like it either. I doubt very many of us call our dp's 'Dear' in real life

You can always think of it as sanding for 'dastardly' which makes every post seem pleasingly Wacky Races-esque - that's what I do. I have never used the abbreviations myself, and nobody has complained, so I think you'll be safe...

I never use the "d" thing. I really struggle to read it as well, despite being here for over a while now. Plus, it's not always obvious what the second letter stands for.

You know you've been here too long when you find yourself thinking of your child as 'DeeDee'

Dh means dear husband? Nah Dick head

I have accidentally referred to DS as DeeEss in conversation.

I said on another thread a few weeks ago that when I type in DH the D stands for dickhead not dear or darling. (I love him really!)

Do other sites sneer at us? The cheeky feckers.

No I don't mean so much other sites (though there are plenty who sneer at MN!) as journos of the type who think the world is interested in another "I went on Mumsnet and they were all mean to me (plus they use stupid acronyms which proves they are all silly mummies)" article

DD/DS/DM etc has been used for years all over the internet, it's not exclusive to Mumsnet :)

I think this who are suggesting of you don't like it use other sites instead are being quite mean! I don't use those acronyms either and I really don't think it's mandatory. Nobody should mind.

Don't use it then. No one will care.

Use hubby and bubs instead.

Isn't 'bubs' a bit passé now? I've spotted a little outbreak of 'baba'.

It irritated the hell out of me at first but it is here to stay and you do get used to it. I always imagine the D in DH to be said in a sarcastic tone with an eye roll!

Tbh I prefer DS1 etc to some forums where posters use nicknames for their children, understandable not to want to use real names but can get very confusing!

The only times the D bothers me now is when it's not very clear who they mean eg. I assume DS is a son but the poster meant sister (sister = Dsis!) or DF - father, friend, fiance? Sometimes it's clear who they mean, sometimes not.

I don't mind DS/DD and DH if you really have to, but it's when it gets added to everything like DMIL, DFIL and DC (cat!). The MIL part is fine, you don't need to add it. Or when people write it out anyway - DDad. You've bloody well said the actual word, why did you need to add another bloody letter!

I don't mind dd, dh etc. Try saying it out loud, "dear daughter" or "dear brother in law" does not sound the least bit saccharine if I say it, on the contrary .

Strange that everyone gets D except the ILs!

I've always read it as tongue in cheek and self aware, therefore the opposite of saccharine. I assumed everyone read it like that tbh.

CharlesRyder that's so funny, almost as bad as saying 'lol' in conversation .

Ive only been on mumsnet some about September last year and found some posts difficult to read and had no clue what all the codes meant! Including IYSWIM, which I ended up googling! As for the D's, when I found out it stood for 'dear' I thought, does anybody under a certain age still say 'my dear husband'?! I'm 22 and not married so mine is just 'OH' anyway, which I'm hoping means other half! If not, I've been saying something else for the past few months .
The rest of the D's I just figured out myself, some I've probably got wrong .

YANBU. I hate it, but I never use any of the 'D' abbreviations (I'm not the only one either) and nobody has ever picked me up on it.

As others have said it's not confined to mumsnet.

I'm not anti-abbreviation/acronym but this particular one just grates on me.

Welcome Panjita79
Or should that be DPanjita79?