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| Elaine with newborn Joanne |
After you've had your baby there are always loads of things that you're surprised to find out. Things you wished you'd known before but noone ever told you.
We've been asking you what you wished you'd known before you became pregnant....
 I was so tired, nothing could have prepared me for how tired I was.
elainemumofgirls
I wish someone would have told me the truth about labour instead of saying its not that bad it just feels like having a big poo!
mum2be_deb
Call me naive, but I had no idea that after giving birth I would bleed for 8weeks straight.
CatBarry
I wish someone had properly explained how bad post partum blues can be. I remember lying on the bed sobbing when Adam was 3 days old and my boobs were aching and I honestly thought having him was the worst thing I had ever done.
......also piles from pushing......OMG they were horrible!
Nemo
Sorry if this is a bit gross but...I wish someone had warned me about that first wee after giving birth!!!! It shocked me how stingy it was - until I was told it was ok to wee in the shower!
I also wish I'd realised how many clothes people kindly give you - I wouldn't have bought anywhere near as much stuff!
BeccaT
I had no idea how much it would sting getting Katelyns head out!!! I was out of it at the time (gas and air) but Kev said all I kept shouting was 'This really really stings. Why didn't you bl**dy warn me?'.
I was also expecting to be in labour for hours so packed everything on the list they gave us - including magazines for Kev & chocolate for me to keep my energy up .... waste of time Katelyn arrived 3 hours after getting to the hospital.
And no one told me that the 'terrible twos' start at about 16 months!!!!!! How can something so small produce so much????
I was so stupid to think that morning sickness only occurred in the morning. How wrong was I!?
Kat30
I wish i had known how expensive babys were and that when they teethe they are terrible. Also I wish I would of known that 10 month olds do have tantrums
yummymummy2008
I would have liked to have understood and known more about colic. I really struggled with her having colic for 14 weeks as I had never come across it before. Nor it would seem had any of my friends or family, so I didnt have any real support or understanding with what Imogen and I were going through.
Also I wish I had done things based on my own judgement, rather than what people tell you (especially parents who have forgotten what its like). E.g - Dont let them sleep in the day, they wont sleep at night.....
edwards
I wish someone had told me that the terrible two's never really stop....they just turn into the 3 year old from hell, and then they turn into 4 year olds with attitude....and then eventually they reach the pinnacle....the teen years.
Eeyore
Wish i knew that it was ok to ask for help when I needed it. I just thought that everyone just got on with it. But I met a mum to speak to about things and it made me realise its ok to sometimes think OH MY GOD!!!
finsmum
I wish I'd known that full-time private nursery for a 6-month old would be the equivalent of a second mortgage
I wish I'd known what 'labour' was supposed to feel like - I wouldn't have gone to work that morning!
I wish we'd known more about baby foods...
I wish I'd known just HOW NOT 100% the mirena coil was
I wish I'd heard of an umbilical hernia and SPD so i wouldn't have spent DAYS suffering before getting medical help!
I wish I'd known about 'baby blues' too...was so scared that I was suffering from PND that I worked myself into such a state!
I wish I'd known that my hips would never come back to their pre-pregnancy size so I could have sold off my old clothes on ebay when I had the time and the inclination!
I wish I'd known about freecycle when I was pregnant...
I wish someone had prepared me for the awesome gushing feelings of love and adoration I'd experience...they still knock me sideways!
I wish I'd had more time with him as a baby...now he's onto a different stage and I'm just not coping with not being needed as much by him...kinda selfish, I know.
and intriguingly
On the other hand, I'm soooooo glad that my sister told me what to do when it was time to push! Won't go into details here but she was totally spot-on!!! (the mind boggles!)
Mummy Lorrie
I wish I'd took on board what my colleague told me, and taken maternity leave earlier (4 days is so not enough!).
I wish i'd known how ratty I would get, taking things out on James.
I wish i'd known just how much a baby would affect our (small) social life, and how I can't just nip to the post box or to the shop for a pint of milk!
missladyannie
I wish I'd known....
How painful the stitches were going to be. After I had Kian I could hardly wee or sit down for days
How many clothes friends & family buy - I needn't have bought any!
How long it takes to get out of the house with your first newborn & how much stuff you need to take with you!!!
To take a spare set of clothes EVERYWHERE in case of accidents!
How useful an item a baby sleeping bag was! I never had one until Kian was about 1 but then I never looked back
How quickly babies outgrow a moses basket! A huge waste of money if you ask me. Try to borrow one or just put baby straight into a cot!
How strange but absolutely wonderful it would be to hold your baby in your arms for the first time & how you would feel such a new & overwhelming love for them - a love you would never feel for anyone but your kids
That for the next few years you will be walking around with puke/poo/food/snot on your clothes!
You will never EVER get to have a lie-in again!.... EVER!!!
That you quickly forget how life was before kids & wouldn't be without them despite some of the worse points about being a mother!
How addictive having babies is!
BlondeLou
I wish I'd known that:
You can lose all sensation after the birth - first time I stood up with a full bladder (thankfully at home) I just wet myself. Husband had to go and get me a bunch of Tena ladies so that I could leave the house without fear!
Sometimes recovering from the birth is worse than the birth itself.
The day after labour every muscle in your body aches!
Some babies are enormous when born - so many of the clothes we had for him didn't fit when he was born at 10lb 9oz
You can lose weight quite quickly in the weeks after the birth - so rushing out to buy non-maternity clothes that fit in the first month can be a bit of a waste of money.
Stretch marks can appear AFTER the birth. Aaargh - I thought I'd escaped them and then my belly looks like a road map
EmmaK
I wish...... I didn't listen to EVERYTHING the midwife was telling me to do and that I listened to my body and trusted my own intuition.
I wish..... I knew how much I would miss lying on my tummy for 9 whole months!
yummie_mummie
And finally a poignant..
I wish I knew the importance of folic acid when I was 21......
jaidynsmum
March 2009 | 
Rohan's Birth Story
