Parenting and parenthood are two completely different things. Parenting is the process of raising and educating your children, while parenthood is the state of being an actual parent (Parenting Vs Parenthood - What's the Difference? | WikiDiff, n.d.). “ Pregnancy and the transition to parenthood are major adjustment periods within a family. Existing studies have asked parents, retrospectively, about their experience of antenatal education, mainly focusing on women. We sought to address this gap by asking first-time mothers and their partners about how they could be better supported during the antenatal period, particularly in relation to the transition to parenthood and parenting skills,” (Ingram, 2008). In this study the purpose was to conduct this study on 24 women from two healthcare organizations. The results of this study were that the knowledge of transitioning into parenthood was very poor. Women felt more supported, especially by female relatives, and if they supported postnatal groups. Men felt involved with their wife’s pregnancy, but not involved with antenatal appointments and antenatal classes. The parents had been unaware and surprised with the changes in their relationships. Both would have liked to have had more knowledge on parenting and baby care (Transition to Parenthood: Is Truth Stranger Than Fiction?, n.d.).
There are so many myths that can prevent couples from entering parenthood. The common myths are that mothers should be calm, grateful and confident. Mothering is intuitive and comes naturally. Childbirth is to be embraced and celebrated in its entirety. Mothers bond with their babies immediately. A mother is selfish if she expresses her own needs. A good mother is always available to her child. Couples always agree on approaches to parenting. And birthing a healthy baby brings closure to all prior pregnancy related losses (Adjusting to Parenthood - After Birth, n.d.). We sometimes set the expectation that we aren’t going to be good enough to be parents. This is so far from the truth. We may set certain expectations, but in the end we may surprise ourselves with how prepared we actually are. In reality, no family is exactly the same. Parents all have their own way of handling parenthood even if it isn’t the way most people may do it.
Transitioning to parenthood can be terrifying for everyone. It is important to expand your knowledge on the best ways to make these transitions. It may be a learning process at first, but in the end it is worth it. Setting certain expectations with your spouse and communicating with each other can really make a difference with these major life changing experiences.
References
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Transition to parenthood: Is truth stranger than fiction? (n.d.). International Forum for Wellbeing in Pregnancy. Retrieved February 19, 2022, from https://www.ifwip.org/transition-to-parenthood/
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