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another name change saga . tell me i'm being daft . i know i am .

74 replies

freesias · 07/04/2011 21:56

ok long rambling story but here goes

dd has just turned one too late to change her name etc

when she was born dp insisted there was only one name he liked , unfortunately i loathed it but dp refused to discuss names and vetoed every name i suggested . he believed his name for her would grow on me because i loved her . after a difficult birth c section, i gave in and accepted his choice in tears in the registry office on the last day we could register her and called her name a , name b. i felt that as i had a section dp didn't feel i had a right to name her

when she was 6 months old she had been baptised by then , dp realised i still loathed it and could hardly bring myself to use it,even though all our friends and family in rl loved it , and he aggreed reluctantly to use her name b, a name we both liked but had discounted because it didn't feel right (too try hard posh) and dp had been quite negative about it during the pregnacy as he was with every name suggested .name b was in my top ten names but towards the bottom of that list but had been dps second choice

6 months on although i like the name we are using for her i don't love it , and if i hear anyone say anything negative about it , i wonder have we made the right decision . in reality name b was the lesser of 2 evils . i still don't feel it suits her .i also dislike it's most obvious nn . i feel guilty because i love her dearly and hate the fact that she will always know her name has been changed , caused so much heartache etc, she will have trouble with form filling etc and that although i like her name i don't love it especially as she is not our first dc and i love her siblings names and wouldn't care what others thought of them .

  on top of this many people who know we changed her name still call her by the name a and even those who use her new name say things such oh her name  a was such a lovely name implying her  name b is not .

    although i know we have to keep using her new name because it would be completely unfair  to change it again now , i keep wondering if we should have  carried on using name a , as it would have caused less heartache for dd . i feel angry with dp as we could have avoided all this if he'd just listened in the first place and angry with myself for not refusing to name her until dp discussed it properly  . 
   i am not normally this indecisive athe other dcs sorted either prebirth or within an hour of being born , so i really don't know what went wrong this time . (more guilty feelings)
 i think in reality i feel like this because i feel i not only did i not get the birth i hoped for , i also feel i was  left out of naming her iyswim
   if you've experienced this when did you get over the names you didn't use and learn to love the name you did .
   if not how do i move from liking to loving her name and not being constantly knocked by others opinions .
      tell me to get a grip but please be gentle (i feel genuinely upset about this ) , tell me i'll love her name because i love her and i'll get over this  becuse i  know this is stupid , i know  i need to move on but how .
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BobbiDazzler · 08/04/2011 09:35

You sound really down, OP. Is there more to all of this than the name issue? The line 'i felt that as i had a section dp didn't feel i had a right to name her' really struck me. That is such a sad thing to hear Sad.

Personally, I think both Felicity and Arabella are absolutely beautiful names - feminine, classic and classy. Could you learn to love either of them? Lots of nickname opportunities for both as well. Flick, Fliss, Lissie, Bella/Bell, Ari etc.

Could you move on from this without another name change? or do you feel you really need to change her name to feel happy? And if so, what name would you choose?

PfftTheMagicDragon · 08/04/2011 09:36

Felicity is a great name.

I can see why you are upset, and I would be in your situation. But at this point I think you have to accept the name and start trying to love it.

I would spend some time trying to find a good shortening of Felicity that you like and start using it.

freesias · 08/04/2011 09:49

bobbi definitely not changing it again as i'm really not sure it would change anything . it is more to do with the resentment i fel towards dp that he just wouldn't listen ,to how i was feeling etc. i was willing to compromise and didn't foist my choices on him . he now admits he was wrong was stressed at work and wanted to be in control somewhere . although this admission apology helps it does also add salt to the wound , particularly when he adds i think the name you liked would have suited her really well.AngrySad

we tend to call her arabella felicity so hopefully one will stick or she can decide when she's older. to be honest i think i went off the name felicity because it meant happiness and after the section , the wound didn't heal massive open wound for 8 weeks and i felt less than happy and the name just didn't sit well although i had disliked even before she was born, however ,i can see it's attractions and have to admit fliss is sweet .

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Valinor · 08/04/2011 09:51

freesias you sound so sad about this. I really do feel for you. But I do think it's too late to change her name again now. I have a 5 month old and she has started to recognise her name so I think it would be unfair to your daughter to confuse her even further.

FWIW I think Felicity and Arabella are both lovely names. We nearly used the latter for our dd. The great thing about both these names is that they have lots of nn potential so I'm sure one will emerge which will suit your dd.

I didn't get to use my #1 name for dd but at least we reached a compromise. However, I still look at her and wonder what other names would've suited her better. I think this is completely normal when you don't get to use a name you really wanted. I don't dwell on it though and I'm quite happy with her name (even though I've had a mixed response when I've introduced her).

I think maybe not getting the birth you wanted has had a greater impact on you than you realise. Can you speak to your health visitor to see if there are any sort of support groups or counselling you could have? I think once you address this then the name issue may seem less important.

I hope you manager to move on x.

freesias · 08/04/2011 10:01

valinor i do think the birth issue made her name more important in many ways , i almost feel i was a bit player in her birth (irrational i know ) and thus being involved in her name has gained more importance than it should have iyswim . also almost a feeling that if i'd given birth vaginally ,it was an elcs she was breech ,dp would have been more willing to listen to my choicesand i would have more rights in the naming procedure again not necessarily rational . i think i almost feel robbed of her birth and her name .have spoken to hv and have an appointment with a counsellor in 2 wwks which may start to help

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largeginandtonic · 08/04/2011 10:10

Poor you OP.

I love the names she has! They are adorable.

My dd2 was named within a few hours of birth and i did like her name...but didn't love it. Dh went off to sea for a few months and while he was away i changed her middle name (he knew btw, not sneaky, sneaky Grin)

She suited her middle name so much it kind of became her name. She is now called the middle name as her first name. Tbh the nn from her now first name is used most.

She is 2 now. Not confused at all. I am sure when she is older she will raise her eyebrows at us though.

DesertOrchid · 08/04/2011 13:20

I'm sorry you are so sad.

I hesitate to do an online 'diagnosis' but it does sound like this runs a lot deeper than just names and maybe you need a bit of support in other ways? You sound very down :-(

I think they are both nice names - not that that helps if you aren't keen, of course!

Only think I could think of was to suggest if she's a tomboy then Felix as a nn for Felicity is a possibility.

freesias · 08/04/2011 13:43

desertorchid not down as such but dd has been ill with ear infection for last 2 weeks , so have not had much sleep which is probably clouding my judgement and heightening my emotions about her birth and name etc

just going to "chill " over the weekend and accept that both names are lovely and either would suit . i really need to stop over thinking this

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sunshinescarlett · 09/04/2011 21:37

I am so sorry you are feeling this way. I went through a similar situation with my DD and we did end up changing her name before she reached 12 months but the whole situatuation was so emotional and upsetting. It is soooo hard if you can't get used to her name. Maybe you could consider adding in another middle name by deed poll, something you love and she may consider using in the future. FWIW, the two names you have given your DD are the two names I was vetoed. For me, she has got the most beautiful and perfect name but I understand that this probably wont count for much. I know it is a bit of a stretch but I considered using Etty/ie as a NN for Felicity. Hope you start to feel a little better about things soon x

freesias · 09/04/2011 23:03

thanks sunshine i think in reality felicity as a name has actually grown on me and maybe it's not as bad as i initially thought , felt . i can see it's merits and it is sweet yet grown up and almost think maybe we should have just left it in the first place , i hate to admit dp may have been right . very weird that these wewr the names your dh vetoed .I really am coming round to believing that she really suits both names . i really keep worrying about how she's going to manage with passports , bank accounts etc as the name she's known as will be her second name and that she'll hate me because she will be the only one of her siblings who goes by her second name . daft i know .

lo slept better last night so less hung up on her name .

   in reality it's definitely not her name that needs to change but my feelings towards dp for not listening to how i felt after her birth , and probably my hang up over her nae is more to do with the manner of her birth rather than her actual namem itself. 
      i think we will definitely add a 3rd name  even if it's by deedpoll and probably alter the order  to arabella felicity cecilia /cecily , this was the name i really liked but dh vetoed emphatically 

 will also consider fliss /bella  as a nick name .
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Supersunnyday · 10/04/2011 08:55

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Supersunnyday · 10/04/2011 08:57

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Pixipie · 10/04/2011 09:07

How about Flix as a nn for Felicity? FWIW I love both names x

freesias · 10/04/2011 10:05

supersunny thanks i prefer arabella but had worried about it being too frilly and of the moment ( mumsnet comments ) , which has kept swaying me from my initial feelings that it is a strong yet femminine name , classic name with a long history . i think of arabella weir when i think of the name . personally i find felicity a more frilly , girly girl name , i know others would disagree

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emeraldislander · 11/04/2011 16:18

i really keep worrying about how she's going to manage with passports , bank accounts etc as the name she's known as will be her second name and that she'll hate me because she will be the only one of her siblings who goes by her second name . daft i know .

Naah. The world and his wife are naming their kids with tons of names these days. Passport office will cope:)
It sounds like you're worrying more that that DD will feel upset by the circumstances of her birth. Glad you're speaking to a counsellor.

SoupDragon · 11/04/2011 16:28

I am the only one of my siblings to be know by their middle name rather than their first. That was never an issue though... I don't think it ever really occurred to me until now :o It has been a bit of a PITA wrt plane tickets etc as I have to remember to tell anyone else who is booking that it needs to be in my full name. It's just habit now though.

On the subject of your DDs names, I wouldn't worry about "confusing" her by changing it again if that's what you do. She won't remember. Neither name is to my taste but they are both fine names (I have a marginal preference for Felicity which surprises me... Arabella is the one that seems frilly and girly girl to me :) I think I like the nicknames to go with Felicity)

SoupDragon · 11/04/2011 16:29

You need to sit down with your DP and have a heart-to-heart about the name, how it made you feel etc and where you are going from here.

weimy · 11/04/2011 16:51

I agree with soupdragon you need to tell your DP how you feel about the name and why you think he wouldn't let you choose. It is going to fester if you don't. x

jerURSULAmBuffay · 11/04/2011 16:57

You could have 'Lissie' as a nn of Felicity which I personally prefer. I do hope you work through this and I think that pp are right and that the names are not really the problem so much as your feelings towards your DH & the situation.

freesias · 11/04/2011 17:02

weimy and soupdragon will definitely speak to dp possibly after speaking to counsellor next week . it needs to be brought out into the open . it is definitely festering already and a source of huge irration with dp which is going nowhere .

soupdragon although i'm persuading myself there ok neither really do it for me but they are infinitely better than dp's other options augusta or winniefred

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jerURSULAmBuffay · 11/04/2011 17:05

To be honest...I got my number 1 choice, DH came round to it etc and I essentially named DD. However, if I were to go back, I'd choose differently and I loiter this board because although I don't want another child I do long for another naming opportunity Blush Don't know if that makes you feel any better or not, ha.

freesias · 11/04/2011 17:13

jer glad i'm not alone and yes it does make me feel much better . have managed to persuade dp to try for another dc but not sure whether age will have caught up with me , so loitering here with intent , i will get it right next time . if not i'll have to buy a pet inorder to indule my name fantasies Smile

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jerURSULAmBuffay · 11/04/2011 17:21

I don't think pregnant women should be allowed to name babies anyway Grin I don't know why I feel I didn't get it right, but I don't. DD suits her name though but something rests uneasy-I had a hard time around her birth with a bereavement & I think it's actually that. Good luck.

iamabadger · 11/04/2011 17:22

Adding another name by deed poll will possibly make things more difficult for her! I changed mine to my step dad's at 18 and therefore have to provide even more documentation for anything official. I really don't see what adding another name she won't be known by will do to help you or the situation, sorry.

freesias · 11/04/2011 17:27

iamabadger we're in scotland and on further investigation you can actually alter a childs birth cert up to 16 although after a year the old name remains on the new cert iyswim while prior to a year its deleted

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