Not 100% about the name we've chosen for baby

[bluemoon2468]

I'm 39 weeks pregnant with a little boy. We settled on a name a long time ago, right after we found out his sex. It's a name I've had in my head for a long time, probably for a few years now, and I was so certain about it being the right name. DH wasn't fully convinced at first but he came round to it and now says he loves it. We've been referring to the bump as this name, and whenever we talk about the baby or to the baby we use the name. And now all of a sudden out of the blue I'm not sure about it 😬 I have no idea why! Hormones? Overthinking it? The dawning realisation that he's about to be born and I'm going to have to make the decision legal and tell everyone? I haven't told my husband about my doubts because I feel so silly... I spent ages winning him round to the name and now I'M the one with doubts 🙄

Did anyone else get 'cold feet' about their name choice?

We have a backup name which we both also love but as we've been using the name for so long it feels weird to suggest using the other name instead! I know we don't have to decide for sure until after he's born, but I'm scared that the decision will be even harder then because I'll be even more hormonal and we'll be on a countdown to tell people the name and register the birth!

I apologise for the rambling post of a very hormonal heavily pregnant woman!

Keep to the plan. When the hormones subside you will be glad you did.

Yes , I was the same, had a name in mind, won DH over, when DD was born tried the name on her, didn’t feel right, a week later she had a name I had never considered before - feels right even 14 years later 😀 still love the “original” name but for some reason when DD was born it just wasn’t her.
But, whatever you do, your child will become the name - good luck with the final stages of pregnancy

Pregnant people shouldn't be allowed to name babies, for some reason hormones make good names seem terrible and terrible names seem amazing. All of a sudden instead of a baby being called James or something sensible they are called oregano wiggletuff and you think it is brilliant.

Stick with your original choice and wait until baby appears. Also you need to talk to your DH. He will reassure you or tell you he has the same concerns. Either way you can deal with it together.

It's your hormones. If it was your favourite name on a day when you were feeling happy and sensible, then stick to it 🙂 Otherwise you'll end up going round in circles.

I had a similar wobble after DD was born! This resonated with me:
"I'm going to have to make the decision legal and tell everyone"
It just feels like such a big responsibility to name a human!

DH and I had shortlisted names early in pregnancy and the name was our favourite for ages. We'd decided on it but hadn't told anyone as we were waiting for her to be born. Then when she was born I felt really shy about telling people her name, I guess I had a wobble about whether it would suit her and whether people would like it. On the day she was born we said we had a name but wanted to sleep on it before announcing it. The next day we decided we had to name her something and should just be brave and go for it so we then announced the name and luckily it seems to have been well received (although you'd have to be unlucky to get people making negative comments when you've just had a baby!)

Anyway. My advice is don't overthink it and try not to worry. Wait until baby is born as you might have a strong feeling that he suits the name (or not). But unless you have a definite change of heart, just go for the name you've chosen.

FWIW it took a while for us to get used to using the names we chose for both DCs but we love them, DD is only 3 weeks old so early days for her but no regrets with either of them so far!

@NameChange30 thanks for this! I think that's the thing about not telling anyone beforehand... it's like everyone is waiting on this big name reveal and obviously everyone will have their own opinions on any name, but it just feels like such a big statement. Particularly with a first baby, it's like we're putting out there the sort of people we are or something. We haven't shared any name ideas at all with anyone, so people have no idea whether we're going traditional or modern or unusual etc. The name we've chosen isn't particularly controversial or anything, but it's fairly rare (in the 300-400s in terms of popularity) so it's probably a bit marmite. I know that with any name some people will like it and some people won't, but I just feel shy about sharing it! That, coupled with the responsibility of naming a human. I really don't like my own name, and I hate the thought of him disliking his!

I know what you mean! I did get the mumsnet seal of approval on the name, so I knew it was generally liked, but it's still nerve wracking to tell people in real life! Like you say though, even if some love it and some hate it, it doesn't really matter - the important thing is that you like it and DC does too. You could always give a "safe" middle name that they can use if they don't like their first name (I'm sure they will though).

@bluemoon2468 When I was pregnant with my DS we had a name for him for almost 5 months although I had a little niggle about it. Didn’t mention to my OH for ages and when I did he said he had the same niggle too and we ended up picking a completely different name just a few weeks before the birth. Two years later I’m SO glad we didn’t go with the original name so yes even though you are hormonal and this may effect things a little I would say listen to your gut on this one. It’s a lot harder to change the name once baby is born and registered than it is now even if you have been calling the bump by that name! Good luck with whatever you decide 💙

I had a wobble about DC2's name! It was a name I really loved but I think I got a bit self-conscious about it as it was unusual and it didn't feel like a safe choice. Anyway, I really considered changing it. I was worried it just didn't feel 'right' and that it sounded weird and was too unusual. I am so glad that people reassured me about it, because within a couple of months I absolutely loved it again! And I still do!

Why don't you share your feelings with your DH and have an honest conversation about it? That might help you to establish whether it's just a wobble but you love the name, or whether maybe you both prefer the other name!