Everyone told me having a baby would change my life—but no one really prepared me for what that meant. I was ready for sleepless nights and diapers, but I wasn’t prepared for the identity shift, the emotional overwhelm, and the silent guilt I carried in those first few months.
I loved my baby. And I was exhausted, anxious, and not myself.
I kept wondering: Is it supposed to feel this hard? I’d look around and feel like everyone else was handling it better than I was. I didn’t recognize my body, my schedule, my moods—or honestly, even my relationship anymore. I felt joy and awe and love… and also resentment, panic, and loneliness. It was confusing to hold all of that at once.
Therapy became a lifeline. It gave me a place to say the things I didn’t feel safe saying out loud: that I missed my old life, that I felt guilty for wanting a break, that I sometimes cried more than my baby did. My therapist helped me normalize what I was feeling and showed me that postpartum emotional shifts are common—but that didn’t mean I had to go through it alone.
We talked about boundaries, sleep deprivation, relationship strain, the pressure to “enjoy every moment,” and how to navigate all the advice flying at me from every direction. But mostly, therapy helped me reconnect with myself. It helped me name the losses and the gains that come with new parenthood and taught me how to hold space for both.
Now, months later, I’m still figuring it out. But I no longer feel like I’m drowning in silence. I’m learning to ask for help, to set down the pressure to be perfect, and to trust that my baby doesn’t need me to be flawless—just present.
If you’re in it right now—tired, overwhelmed, unsure of who you are—you’re not broken. Therapy helped me find myself again, and it can help you too.
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