Feel disconnected

[Hyperquiet]

Back to work and my one year old is now in nursery. I feel really disconnected from him and I keep crying but I'm also emotionally distant from him.

I feel kind of hollow. Love him to bits but just feel empty and snappy, less patient. Doesn't help that work is super intense.

I wonder if you’ve got a bit of PND?

Rubbish. She is struggling transitioning back into working life now that she has a child. She has had a year of just being a mum and now she has to be both and it’s taking time.

OP this is common. Plan fun things to do at weekends and evenings, cherish family time and try to enjoy work too, with your colleagues, buy some new work clothes, get stuck in to projects. You will be fine.

@QuickPeachPoet

Why are you so quick to say it's rubbish?

I struggled badly with post natal anxiety until my child was 3 and had been in nursery a year and I was back at work.

Imagine "rubbishing" something you don't understand. How bloody rude and ignorant.

Exactly, until your child was 3. OP has started feeling this way because she is back at work. Nothing medicalised, she is struggling with the transition.

@QuickPeachPoet

Post natal anxiety/depression doesn't work that way. Mine didn't hit me until after the first year.

You're weighing in on something you are ignorant about.

Saying "rubbish" and "you'll be fine" isn't helpful. It's worth OP talking to her GP if she's struggling.

I wouldn’t be too quick to rule out PND either. It’s a sneaky bastard and OP’s comments about feeling distant and hollow are telling. Transitioning back to work can be tough after a year on mat leave, no doubt, but its also possible for that transition to be a trigger for PND, which is obviously something parents need a bit more help with. You won’t be wasting a GP’s time @Hyperquiet, if you go and have a chat. Hope you feel better soon! ❤️‍🩹

Thanks everyone. I have been a super anxious mum (always been anxious to be fair) since my baby was born but eased off a bit now that im not breastfeeding as often/baby is older.

How would a GP help at all (aside from meds)?