Hellobee Boards

Nope, it took me a while! I of course loved him, but the bond took time to really grow. They handed him to me, and I really didn't know what the heck to do with him.

One thing that helped me was to go to a breastfeeding support group at my hospital. It was nice to meet other moms who were having difficulties getting started. That and HelloBee made me feel like I wasn't alone with adjusting to the new baby stuff.

Sending you big hugs, it took me about 8 weeks to start to feel more in control, and he started getting funner at that point too. Many of us have been there too, you aren't alone feeling like a walking pair of boobs!

@skibobrown: I had a lot of resentment during the first 8 weeks too. It was hard feeling like I was the only one that could care for him, since DH couldn't feed him. I was the one not getting any sleep. I was depressed and lonely since DH worked 12 hour days, I was alone the whole day. It is really hard to adjust from being a couple who has the flexibility to do anything we wanted, to having a little life completely dependent on you!

@bree72: @BeachMama: My baby screamed and really wasn't much fun to be around for the first almost 6 months. It is terrible to say that but when they scream constantly it is very hard. My son had milk soy protein intollerance and that is why he cried. The removal of those helps soooooo much. It has made everything much more pleasant. By 6 months we had taken him off of his reflux meds and he only fussed when it has to do with sleep.

As difficult as it was and how I very much felt that I wasn't bonded I must have been. I knew something was wrong even when others were telling me I was crazy.

At 1 year I am in a much better place. Stick it out, find support and never let anyone make you feel crazy because you aren't.

@pastemoo: I absolutely agree. I was so traumatized by the surgery that I felt like my mind and body were in a state of survival and sadly, defense. It mentally felt like I had been attacked in a way, and it was hard not to feel some resentment towards the baby. It would have been nice to have someone talk to me about how I felt and not just how the baby was latching and how many dirty diapers he'd had.

Yes, I felt bonded right away but that's not to say I enjoyed motherhood right away. Even now at 15 weeks I am still not loving this newborn/infant stage.

I have grown to really dislike the comments about 'cherishing this time because they grow up so fast.' LO hasn't been an easy baby but he hasn't been a hard one either and DH and I are both looking forward to when we can do more with LO like go to the park, beach or zoo. While baby smiles and giggles do make our day, we are ready for the next stage!

Oh, and we had major Bfing issues for the first month. Hang in there! Once you are ready to give up it gets better!

I felt bonded to him right away, but there are still times that I feel very frustrated with motherhood mostly because he is not a very good sleeper at night which has led to sleep deprivation. This makes me feel very guilty because we tried for awhile for our baby and I had pre-term labor and was very fearful for his well-being.

I had a hard time bonding at first and I had a vaginal fairly easy birth. It was especially hard because I was sure I would bond with her instantly. But when you're in pain, your own body feels like you don't know it, and you have this tiny person you needs you for everything and can't even give you a smile, it can be hard. I had that "I love you because you're my child, but I'm not in love with you" type of feeling the first few weeks.

It gets so much better once they stop crying as much and can smile and interact with you. You will get that bond. It's just not instantaneous for all of us. And that's okay.

I don't think I really felt that bond till DS was about 3 months old, and it wasn't till probably even a month after that that I started feeling things like "I love him so much!" or "I miss him when I'm not around him!"
Now he's 14 months and sometimes I wish I could go into his room at night and pick him us just to snuggle with him. I definitely did not feel that way when he was a newborn... I was more than happy to hand him off any time!

Nope. I had some issues with a traumatic birth and PPD and it took several weeks to learn to bond with her. I would say I didn't really feel like she was my baby until like 6-7 weeks. She's 10 weeks now and I couldn't love her more though. I had issues with breastfeeding too and I felt extremely rejected by her and I was so stressed I didn't even want to look at her. Like Artbee, life was so much better after we went to formula and I made peace with that decision.

It does get easier to bond with them after they start to show their personality a bit. LO has such a big one already that I can't help but snuggle her all the time. She's going to be a terror when she gets older, so I'm going to do it while I can!