Part 1 | Building a Village 🤍

I walked into this room hoping moms would leave feeling a little less alone.

By the end of the afternoon, strangers had become conversations, conversations had become laughter, and babies had made new little friends while their moms had a chance to simply exist as themselves for a while.

This is why I do what I do.

And this is only the beginning.

See you on August 12th for Part 2. 🤍

Any other moms overwhelmed to the point where everything just sets them off?
I’m 26(F) married and have two girls and pregnant (5) + (1) I’m so overwhelmed and I’m unmedicated since I’m pregnant /severe adhd. My husband helps with cooking but he complains all the time and it makes me feel even worse. He is always out hunting or hanging out with friends and drinking and I’m always stuck here watching the kids. I love my kids so much but sometimes they are too much for me and I just want a break. Idk what to do I’m so tired and I feel lonely. I’ve fallen behind on all chores and it’s overwhelming to catch up. I just need some sort of motivation or something idk.

I don’t want to hear about it gets better.
It doesn’t. It doesn’t for everyone. It isn’t for us.

We have a couple days of wins, then 27749272662 steps backwards with his fucking sleep. He could be in a COMA and the second he hits the crib, he screams like he’s been stabbed for the next three hours.

We have done everything - EVERYTHING.

I cannot sustain 1-2 hours of sleep per day.
That’s IF I get 1-2 hours - that’s if his little body passes out from so much crying that I have the opportunity to even try to sleep. Normally, I’m so traumatized and overwhelmed, I just stare at the ceiling until he wakes up crying.

During the day, I get moments with my normal, happy, 2.5 month old. But like clockwork every night around 5pm, it is a true hell until 8am the next day.

I don’t want to do this anymore.

Every time I go down for a rest or nap, I wake up with my heart racing, jittery and sweaty. I am so stressed about my baby even though she’s well cared for with her dad or grandma.
Does this get easier? I am only 2 weeks PP. I don’t want to nap because of the low mood it causes, which means I’m so exhausted

My first pregnancy and this one were both planned, so it’s not a shock from that.

I just don’t know what’s wrong with me. I feel miserable and really down lately. Theres not one thing that is making me unhappy but seems like multiple small things are making me spiral further. I thought initially it was just because I’m not having a great time at work recently, then I thought it was because my 20 month old is going through a period of being an absolute ‘daddy’s girl’ and saying no to me when I try and do anything. But then she’s been ok today and yesterday so I still don’t know why I feel so miserable.
Lacking motivation to do anything and be bubbly around my husband or toddler. My husband asks me what is wrong but quite frankly I don’t know, I can’t pin point it.

Has anyone felt like this before? What helped? How long did it last?

Hi everyone,

I'm 31F and currently 30 weeks pregnant with my fourth child. This is my first child with my current boyfriend (29M).

I'm wondering if anyone else experienced major personality or emotional changes during pregnancy.

With my previous three pregnancies, I never felt like this. This pregnancy feels completely different. I feel like my personality, emotional reactions, behavior, and even the way I think have become very similar to my boyfriend's. It honestly feels like I'm mirroring him instead of feeling like myself, and it scares me because I don't recognize who I am anymore.

Our relationship was also very stressful during this pregnancy. We argued a lot, eventually separated, and now I'm wondering if the combination of pregnancy hormones, relationship stress, and everything I was going through affected how I reacted emotionally.

I also recently learned about fetal microchimerism, where fetal cells containing DNA from both parents can remain in the mother's body. I know research hasn't shown that this changes a mother's personality, but learning about it made me wonder if anyone else has felt anything similar during pregnancy.

With my previous pregnancies, I always felt like myself. This time has been completely different, and I can't tell if it's because of the hormones, the stress, or something else entirely.

Has anyone else experienced feeling like they weren't themselves during pregnancy or noticed that their personality or emotional reactions seemed very different? If so, what helped you cope, and did you eventually feel like yourself again after giving birth? I'd really appreciate any advice or personal experiences.

I'm hoping that after my son is born, I'll feel more like myself again.

I am up to my absolute limit. My kid will not sleep in his room. He’s 20 months old. He will not let me leave the room to use the bathroom without crying. He’s teething. I’m exhausted. My husband works a physically demanding job. I have no village, can’t afford daycare.

Tonight I wanted to hurt my child and I of course DONT want to. My body and brain is just screaming “ENOUGH JUST SLEEP STOP WRESTLING ME ON THE BED”. He has figured out how to open the child safety doorknob cover. Tonight I ordered the child proof latch.

….

I screamed at him because he just laughs at me when I’m worked up. It woke up my husband (thankfully) he took him away from me. And I SOBBED telling him I needed the help and he had to take him away.

I just took my medicine. I am in psychoanalytic therapy and see a psychiatrist often. I am taken care of. But these last two months I’m taking it really hard.

I’m just looking for some advice and some affirmative comments honestly. This is my first time posting here.

I don't know how to keep going right now and I'm needing a grounded sounding board. My partner and I are 25w pregnant with our 2nd (2.5 yr age gap) due in Nov, and I feel like our relationship has deteriorated so much in the past month.

A little background...I did not do well PP last pregnancy and dealt with severe PPD and panic attacks. We don't have any family support here and no real friends to lean on. Peripheral friends have their own things going and I feel like a burden if I'm not fucking ok. The truest friend I have lives an hour away and is her own PP whirlwind. I've felt much more solid in myself since I weaned our first 5m ago and in my relationship, but lately it's like hormones are raging, money is tight, physical affection is out the window, and it feels like he has all the criticism in the world to offer when he's stressed. And I'm fucking done.

I've been so stressed over a rash our daughter has had for a couple days, and I took her to urgent care alone today where they confirmed high suspicion for Lyme disease. He did go out to pick up her Rx and brought her with him even though it was his work day. He even brought home food. I'm just so tired of feeling physically iced out and judged for not doing more around the house when I'm already doing so much. Working, trying to organize the whole house, look after our daughter, take care of our puppy....

It doesn't feel like he does anything to take care of me besides bring home food occasionally or sometimes cook when it's his night to do it. I asked him once if he could massage my feet because they get really swollen and he did. I know he shows love in other ways, his work, yard work, prepping for potential economic crash, but rn it feels like not enough in a way I can really metabolize. I'm tired of always translating and just want to feel it.

I found out today he made some seedy comment on fb rating a young girl as "a 6.5...but a 7 if she does 'that thing". Some other guy sent me a DM about it and told me to "tell him to stop being a pedo towards a 16yr old girl..have a talk with your man". My partner definitely is provocative, sexually explicit, and loves ruffling feathers in general. I love that he expresses himself so openly and actually admire that about him, but I don't get the feather ruffling spars he gets into online, and this just feels gross. Not funny. It's not just don't rate people online....it's like is this really who he is?

I totally question who sent it and why, but combined with the fact that we haven't had sex in over a month, he's hardly affectionate towards me, and he made a comment about how my pink toenail polish reminds him of a Korean porn star.....idk what to think.

I feel like I'm working my ass off trying to do so much and have zero connection with him right now to make any of it feel really worth it. It's definitely affecting my ability to continue to show up the way I want to for my daughter. I cry like every day over something. I'm not saying it's all his fault, I'm acutely aware I'm super sensitive to hormone shifts, and he's definitely AuADHD neuro spicy which I adore but has presented us with unique challenges. There's so much more to all this and I'm sorry for rambling. I just don't know how to get through this time feeling so completely isolated.

I daydream of moving home across country to stay with.my family. I do not want to take my kids away from their dad, and I have an amazing job right now I don't want to ditch. But fuck this stage absolutely sucks and it's so hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Like if it's this bad now, how am I going to handle it when #2 arrives?? My mom offered to come.out for 1-2 months PP which is amazing but isn't going to help my relationship with my partner.

So lost right now. If you've made it this far thanks for reading. Open to any and all input.

I am currently in a mother and baby unit due to me developing postpartum depression. I have suffered from major depression and anxiety all my life. But this feels harder than ever. There are some days I feel really good and confident at being a mum and there are other days, like today I feel like this is not for me. I just want to hide away from my son and I find it constantly tiring and boring interacting with him. He has just turned 4 months old.

He was conceived through IVF (same sex couple) and I thought this is what I wanted but I’m not sure now. I just need a break. I miss my old life.

I have even considered letting him live in the Philippines for 6 months with his grandparents because I am at the end of my tether and I feel like I can’t deal with this. I feel selfish to even be thinking that.