May 02 2010
I HAVE A BABY …… NOW WHAT?
Jessica Stage, MSW, Registered Clinical Social Work Intern
It seems like many of my friends are pregnant or new parents. Pregnancy is an exciting time, where you have so many wishes and dreams for your child. You imagine how they will be as adults, and what kind of people they will become. In those moments, you don’t generally imagine arguing with your child about the benefits of not having their underwear on backwards, or telling them that no, cake is not an acceptable dinner entrée. You also may imagine that you will be the “perfect parent”. A parent that doesn’t raise their voice, that uses reason and understanding that the child will respond to and obey unconditionally. You won’t use a pacifier, the baby will sleep through the night, and everything will remain exactly the same as it was before you had children.
I think that those of us who are parents can remember how idealistic we were! It is an EYE OPENER when you have that tiny baby home from the hospital, and the baby thinks that day is night and night is day, and you haven’t slept for more than three hours in a row in several weeks! You may feel overwhelmed by the responsibility of another life being on you and your partner’s shoulders. You may miss the person you used to be before you were “mom”, and look enviously upon your friends who do not have children and the freedom that they have.
