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I am so sorry you feel this way. I know I was a wreck for at least 3 weeks with my twins. It got easier at about 6 weeks and then each time they hit a new milestone it seemed to get a little less intense.

Oh sweetie hang in there! It does get easier, usually between 6 weeks and 3 months things start to improve vastly! They sleep more and feed less because their little tummies grow. What you are feeling is so normal. Hang in there. Baby will smile at you soon and do so much to make it better and better. The best advice anyone ever gave me was to try my hardest to stop and enjoy the little special moments. Even when I felt awful, tired as disconnected. To try and hold that little tiny baby on your chest take a big whiff of that sweet little head and know that even though it feels endless it truly does go so fast. HUGS!

We've all survived it, and we'll help you survive it too! A new baby is a huge adjustment, hormones sure don't help either. It did take me almost 8 weeks to start feeling like I was getting the hang of it, I was still crying at 6 weeks, but by 7-8 things got much better (I know that sounds like forever, but it is all a blur now). Having my little guy smile at me at 7 weeks was when the clouds started clearing. We also had our feeding issues sorted out by then, which took a ton of pressure off of me.

@ladybee: First, I know you aren't a failure. You are doing a fantastic job, which I can tell because you care so much! I think I stopped crying every day at about the point you are at, which helped. I also think getting in a good solid 2-4 hours of sleep will help (my mom MADE me take naps, but I always felt better after them). Your LO will only get easier from this point, with different things that make it "hard," but once you get a schedule going things will feel much better!

I think with DD it got easier around 12 weeks, but she was a HARD newborn. With DS, he got easier around 4 weeks, but we had crazy nursing issues, mastitis, and c-section incision issues, so that didn't help.

I hope it gets better for you super soon!

@ladybee: Hang in there, there first couple of months can be tough!! I started seeing improvement around 6-8 weeks

It definitely felt a LOT easier after about 4-6 weeks. 4 weeks was easier, than 6 weeks i started getting out and working out (and honestly, it helped my mind SO MUCH to do some stretching and light sweating).

They get SO MUCH EASIER when they get older. LO is almost 7 months old now, and I cannot BELIEVE that it's just like, night and day.

eta: once they start doing more stuff, it's just....more enjoyable. They're so damn needy at 2 weeks!

I think around 6 weeks was when I saw a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. Being physically incapacitated from a complicated c-section like you definitely made things a whole lot harder. We all went through this, just take it one day or one hour at a time. And eat lots of cookies, that's what got me through!

@ladybee: I felt a fog lift at 6 weeks. I felt better physically and emotionally and started to feel like I knew what I was doing.

Now at 6 months things feel easier again. Feeling much more confident in my parenting ability, the LO is easier to manage, DH and I are in a better place, etc.

Hang in there, you're doing great!

I'm sorry you are having a rough time! I was complete disaster for the first 6 weeks or so. I cried at least twice a day, had thoughts of 'why the heck did I do this,' thought I was a terrible mother, and was all around just miserable. Once we passed the 5-6 week growth spurt I started to see a light at the end of the tunnell.

Once I got back to work and we started to get into our groove, things got infinitely better, and now at 4 mos she is the greatest thing in the world and I LOVE being her mother.

I know it's so so hard to listen to the 'it gets better' crap, because I sure as heck didn't believe anyone, but really, I'm astonished at how much I love her, how happy I am, and how great it is being a mom. I was telling someone the other day that the newborn weeks feel like a bad dream that I can barely remember...and I'm ok with that!!

i'm sorry things have been so hard and that the recovery from the c-section has been difficult. i was raging with hormones for at least 4 weeks. i remember screaming to no one in particular "it's all my fault!" over and over again. even when the hormones calmed down, i was still overcome with stress--LO was colicky for a few weeks, and then his sleep habits were the bane of my existence. maternity leave really stressed me out. still, it was a different kind of stress than those first few weeks.

i realize that wasn't very comforting, but i'm just trying to say that you're not alone. you shouldn't hesitate to speak to your doctor (OB or otherwise) about your feelings if you're so inclined.

lots of hugs.

I think 6 weeks was a magic moment for us. Everything came together.

7 weeks was when things started to get much, much better! He had a crazy growth spurt during week 6 and it was ROUGH. The crying is definitely normal - I wished more moms would have told me that. I remember having moments thinking "what the hell did we get ourselves into?" and "holy crap, we should have waited a few more years for kids". But it does get better, promise!

The first few weeks were incredibly difficult, but then you begin to find your rhythm and then it gets easier week by week. For me things improved vastly when we sleep trained at 8 weeks and then a huge step when she could sit up on her own between 5-6 months. But try to keep on top of your mental health. I was quite blue those first few weeks but got better, but then got blue again at 7-8 months post partum. If you can, don't be shy about asking for or accepting help. Hope you get through this ok. Becoming a mom was the hardest thing I've ever done and I sympathize.

@ladybee: I'm glad stopping the pumping has helped take the burden off you. Healthy happy mama is the most important thing for your baby. I admit, it's really nice to read that I'm not the only one who sometimes thinks, this was a mistake, we should have waited, why did I want this so badly? Once the baby starts smiling at you, that's a big turning point. She might still be difficult as all hell, and you might still have tons of times where you think every problem from eating to sleeping to whatever is all your fault, but then they smile right when you are close to (or already in) tears and you're like, oh, that's why we did this.

I won't act like 6 weeks was magical for us. She had basically a cranky fussy month from 8 weeks to 3 months, but fingers crossed, seems to be settling down. But in between the cranky parts the smiles are the best.

I know exactly how you are feeling, hang in there!! My hardest week was week 3. I remember waking up and thinking I wish someone would just take care of him today, I can't do this one more day!! It does get easier though. You'll start feeling better around 4 weeks or so and around 3 months you finally get into a groove where you feel like you have some control in your life again. It's hard, but it does get better! Good luck.

I am sorry it's so difficult for you right now. You are not alone. Newborns are tough. I read everything under the sun about pregnancy, childbirth and c-sections, but did not for one second think about reading about infants. Then I came home from the hospital and was expected to care for one! The first few weeks were a struggle for me. By about 6 weeks things improved and by 3 months things improved monumentally. That probably sounds like an eternity for you now, though.

I'm glad giving up pumping has helped. I supplemented with formula for the first several weeks so DH could feed DS. I felt conflicted not EBFing, but it let me sleep and rest.

Like @looch: said, things get different. Your LO might develop great routines and you think everything's set and then, bam, it all changes. But you will grow as a new mother and gain the skills to adapt to the changes with grace. We're all here for you.