Being a parent not all it is cracked up to be?

[Anonymous]

There was a thread not to long ago that was similar to this-very candid posts -how some women just love their babies the minute they're born and with some, it grew over time. Some women loved the baby stage-some loved the preschool age-and so and so forth. For me-I didn't enjoy the baby stage. I never got into it-wanted my old life back. But as my son has gotten older, a toddler, I look foward to coming home and spending time with him. When he hugs me, my heart melts. Some days, after work, I only want to lay down on the couch but I can't because I have a toddler who wants my attention-then I'm on auto pilot with my feelings and emotions. Other days-I come home ready to have fun-no two days are the same. I'm there-I'm not there. That's life. When I questioned myself as to why I had my baby-the thought of never seeing him again-brought me back to reality. If I were you-I'd search for what I didn't like being a parent, ie, getting on the floor playing with toys-and focus on enjoying those moments. I dread dinner time because I don't cook-and HAVE to make something for my son-so I sit close to him and watch him laugh as he eats and his little fingers picking up his food-feed the dog-so I can enjoy the moment too. It took me a long time to actually "enjoy" being a parent. I'll look for the thread about this exact topic and will post it. You'll feel better.

[Anonymous]

http://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/14107.page

[Anonymous]

http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/family/05/28/par.happy.mom/index.html

Thought this might help! Just found the article reading the news. IRONIC.

[Anonymous]

OP - it sounds like you may have had high expectations of parenthood? To be honest, I actually have never thought of being a parent as particularly enjoyable, but what made me decide to have children is that it was a life experience I didn't want to miss out on. I've found that "life experiences" are not always fun , but they can be rewarding. In fact, for me, it's usually the hardest acheived accomplishments that are most fulfilling and in ways that might be surprising. For example, I now love taking long showers b/c my chance to do so is so infrequent .

I also have a much younger sister who I helped raise plus my first DS was a handful as an infant so my expectation of motherhood at this stage (I have a toddler and about to have twins) is that it will be mind numbing, painful, and exhausting for the next 3 years. I am already looking forward to returning to work after my maternity leave. But, I do think I am going to enjoy motherhood more and more as kids get older and we can do more with them. Even now every month gets a bit better with DS... As a PP said, parenting is a marathon....hang in there and the when the "runner's high" hits, it might surprise you!