{"id":555,"date":"2015-11-17T16:24:12","date_gmt":"2015-11-17T16:24:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.mumblog.co.uk\/?p=555"},"modified":"2023-09-18T15:19:44","modified_gmt":"2023-09-18T15:19:44","slug":"seven-common-fears-of-new-parents-and-why-you-dont-need-to-worry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mumblog.co.uk\/seven-common-fears-of-new-parents-and-why-you-dont-need-to-worry\/","title":{"rendered":"Seven Common Fears Of New Parents (And Why You Don\u2019t Need To Worry)."},"content":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s probably safe to say that most parents experience fears regarding their child\u2019s well-being from time to time. But if you are a new parent with a baby these fears can be exacerbated by a surge of hormones, a lack of sleep, and the ability to Google any symptom that arises leading to a whole host of worrying possibilities (spoiler alert \u2013 your baby doesn\u2019t have some sort of toxic parasite, they\u2019re probably just teething).<\/p>\n

In addition, we\u2019re bombarded by headlines that scream at us about how the lifestyle we lead could have a huge impact on our child\u2019s health and well-meaning relatives who question our every move. It\u2019s a wonder that any of us make it through parenthood without having a nervous breakdown.<\/p>\n

Thankfully, however, most of our fears remained unfounded, and as our children age and present us with ever more complex problems, we find ourselves wondering why we spent so much time worrying about something so simple or unlikely. Here are some of the common fears that new parents have, rational and irrational alike, and why we shouldn\u2019t be so worried.<\/p>\n

1) I\u2019m Scared That My Baby\u2019s Illness Is Very Serious<\/h2>\n

\"checking<\/p>\n

Firstly, stop researching symptoms on Google. You will always come up with the worst-case scenario that way. Secondly, as with anything medical, if you are worried about your baby\u2019s health then it\u2019s always best to speak to a health professional.<\/p>\n

With that said, no matter what steps you take to minimise infection, your baby will get ill. A lot. And even when she is not technically ill, she will still be full of snot and have diarrhoea and a temperature because teething is evolution\u2019s way of testing our wits as parents. If your baby is alert, and still taking fluids, then the chances are that she is fine.<\/p>\n

2) I\u2019m Scared That I Will Drop My Baby<\/h2>\n

\"mother<\/p>\n

Well, you might. It is a possibility and it does happen. But they are not called bouncing babies for no reason (Well, actually, they are probably not called bouncing babies for that reason, but you get the gist). Obviously, if you do drop your baby then you have to get them checked over, but the chances are that they will be OK. As this writer\u2019s midwife so beautifully put it: \u201cThink about what he had to go through to get into this world. He\u2019s more resilient than you think.\u201d<\/p>\n

3) I\u2019m Scared That I Haven\u2019t Bonded With My New-Born<\/h2>\n

\"mother<\/p>\n

Some women report that upon seeing their baby for the first time, their world immediately changed and they felt an overwhelming amount of love. For other women, however, it\u2019s not all sparkles and magic and that bonding process can take a little while longer. Changes in hormones, possible health issues following labour, and the fact that for the first few weeks at least your baby does little more than eat, sleep, and cry, can all hamper the bonding process.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not unusual and not something you need to worry about unless it continues beyond the first few weeks. If it does continue, then speak to your health visitor, or GP, as you may be suffering from Post-Natal Depression, which is very common, very treatable, and nothing to be ashamed of.<\/p>\n

4) I\u2019m Scared Of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome<\/h2>\n

\"mother<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a terrifying thought, the sudden, unexplained loss of a child, and if you are already prone to anxiety, then the fear that something terrible might happen whilst your baby is asleep can be a huge burden. However, you can rest assured that the risk of SIDS is minimal, affecting one in every 3,000 births in the UK. Not only that, but there is lots you can do to decrease the risk, such as putting your baby to sleep on their back in a crib or Moses basket free of cuddly toys, pillows, and duvets, not smoking, and not falling asleep with your baby on the sofa.<\/p>\n

5) I\u2019m Scared My Baby Isn\u2019t Reaching His Milestones<\/h2>\n

\"baby<\/p>\n

Every parent has that one friend or fellow parenting group member who boasts of how their little darling reached every single milestone either early or on time. That\u2019s wonderful for them, but for those of us with babies who refuse to roll over or crawl to schedule, comparisons are not helpful.<\/p>\n

Try not to worry if your child seems reluctant to take his first steps, or is not as vocal as his peers, the chances are he is just taking his sweet time. It\u2019s also worth bearing in mind that milestone charts, whilst helpful, are only a guide, and that every child develops at his or her own pace. Your health visitor will be able to advise you if any investigations are needed.<\/p>\n

6) I\u2019m Scared I\u2019m Doing It All Wrong<\/h2>\n

\"woman<\/p>\n

Co-sleeping or Crying It Out? Breast or Bottle? Purees or Baby Led Weaning? Disposable or Reusable Nappies? The myriad of parenting styles and their advocates trying to push us one way or another is enough to drive us head first into a large bottle of Pinot Grigio. Thankfully, despite what the experts claim, there is no right or wrong answer to many of the choices we make, and providing you and your family are happy, healthy, and safe, then you really don\u2019t need to worry.<\/p>\n

7) I\u2019m Scared My Baby Doesn\u2019t Like Me<\/h2>\n

\"baby<\/p>\n

Sometimes it might seem that way. Your baby may refuse to look at you, or only seem comforted or excited by the presence of your partner. Don\u2019t take it personally. As your baby grows into a toddler and then a young child, you will find that their favourite parent will swap about on a sometimes-daily basis. And, when he or she is three-years old and has spent the last few weeks permanently attached to your knees, you will be surprisingly grateful for the day when they turn around and say, \u201cNo, I don\u2019t want you to read stories. I want Daddy to do it!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It\u2019s probably safe to say that most parents experience fears regarding their child\u2019s well-being from time to time. But if you are a new parent with a baby these fears can be exacerbated by a surge of hormones, a lack of sleep, and the ability to Google any symptom that arises leading to a whole host of worrying possibilities (spoiler alert \u2013 your baby doesn\u2019t have some sort of toxic parasite, they\u2019re probably just teething). In addition, we\u2019re bombarded by headlines that scream at us about how the lifestyle we lead could have a huge impact on our child\u2019s health <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":562,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14,24,15],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mumblog.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mumblog.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mumblog.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mumblog.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mumblog.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=555"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.mumblog.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3199,"href":"https:\/\/www.mumblog.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/555\/revisions\/3199"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mumblog.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/562"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.mumblog.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=555"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mumblog.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=555"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.mumblog.co.uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=555"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}