When you are waiting for your baby to be born you probably take a class to prepare for labor and how to take care of a newborn, but I’m betting you haven’t thought about how you will prepare your relationship for this transition. Just as some take premarital counseling to prepare their relationship for marriage, couples should prepare their relationship for parenthood. Here are three reasons to prep your relationship for life with baby.
Having a baby will not fix your problems- it will highlight them
If you and your partner have trouble finding time to connect or you don’t feel like a priority in the relationship now adding a baby who needs you for everything and won’t let you get a full nights rest is not going to help. Work on these areas before the baby arrives and your transition will be smoother.
Clarifying expectations and roles
Another area that many new parents run into is not having clear expectations or roles. Maybe Mom and Dad want Dad’s role to be more hands on than it has traditionally been. That’s great… but what does that look like and mean? Clarifying expectations and roles before you are on the sleep deprived roller coaster that is parenthood, will help both of you make this happen. Once you are in the thick of it, it will also be easier for you two to adjust accordingly because you already started the conversation.
Discuss worries and fears
Going from a childless couple to a couple with children is a big deal. It really does change everything. Yes, parts of your life will remain the same, but it’s now different. It just is. So discuss your worries and fears with your partner. You both have them, even if neither of you have mentioned it. Maybe one of you is worried about if you will like this parenthood thing at all or maybe you are worried losing your current lifestyle. Maybe it’s something smaller and everyday like “Will I ever get to do things for myself again?” All of these are very real worries and fears and by talking to your partner about them you two can be there for each other.
Signing up for the Life with Baby class or coming in for therapy can help address these concerns and others, so that your relationship is ready for the transition into parenthood.
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