I pride myself on being a rational person. I am not one of those women who typically lets her emotions get the best of her and I try to keep a level head in the face of patience-testing experiences. That being said, pregnancy hormones are stronger than my usually rational demeanor and a few weeks ago I had my first full-fledged hormonal meltdown. At a hardware store.
I was there with my husband and both children. My eldest daughter loves those little “Customer In Training” mini shopping carts and has been capable of pushing them around the store for a few months now.
She knows not to crash into displays and run over people’s heels. Until recently her younger sister has been content to sit in the big shopping cart and remain contained while we shop, but on this particular day she was itching for freedom and wanted to push a mini shopping cart just like her big sister. What harm could come of it, right?
Oh, I should have known better. Karenna (the younger of our two rabid beasts) was a menace! And the two girls combined were a force of destruction: plowing into shelves, knocking items over, angrily crashing into each other, mowing over my toes and basically acting like feral wolves. It all came to a head when I sighed in exasperation to Steve, “My patience is gone. I can’t handle this anymore!”
To which he replied, “Well, kids are always going to be like this. You just can’t let them get to you.”
Cue the flood of pregnancy hormones. I was looking for a little empathy and compassion, not a husbandly dose of rational practicality. My eyes began to fill, my chin (well, both of them) began to quiver and before I knew it I was in the throes of an unstoppable breakdown in the middle of the gosh-darned kitchen centre of the hardware store. Steve quickly apologized, but I was beyond restoration at that point. The tears just kept on flowing as we paid for our purchases, loaded the crazy kids into the truck and drove home. It was like I just needed a good cry, whether I liked it or not, and there was nothing I could do to stop it. Gah.
We had to go to the same hardware store the following week and Avelyn asked why Karenna wasn’t allowed to have her own mini cart again. I said, “Because it makes Mommy cry.” And that was the end of it.
Were your emotions more difficult to manage while pregnant? How did your partner deal with the challenge of your hormonal fragility?
I’m glad you had that good purging cry. Were the girls shocked to see mommy cry? That usually rattles kids and they get all concerned about mom and suddenly behave.
Did that happen for you…. I hope.
I have recently started crying when I hear the OnStar commercials on the radio. I’m so pathetic. And fully aware that it’s acting and not real scenarios. Still, it makes me cry.
Is “Because it makes mommy cry” copywrited or can I use it the next time I have to tell my 3 year old she can’t Dora and the Crystal Kingdom for the 8 thousandth time.
Remember that day in Save-On-Foods.
Yeah…That…
I can’t say I had the horrible breakdown but I was a mess emotionally. My boyfriend decided to quit his job while I was on vacation and after that I was a wreck. I think part of the reason we are waiting so long to have another is because he’s terrified of my emotional status when I am pregnant.
I was a hot mess during pregnancy when it came having any control over my emotions. One term for it is emotional incontinence, which I think is just a perfect description. Pregnancy: the time when everything leaks uncontrollably. I even blogged about it! http://preggyblonde.blogspot.com/2009/03/31-weeks-6-days.html
Hang in there 🙂
Laura
I’ve been super emotional. No public breakdowns yet, but I can’t watch a movie (even a happy/funny one) without crying. And I have been unreasonable with Travis. I KNOW I’m being unreasonable.. but I can’t stop it! He’s just so much more ANNOYING for some reason!
Let’s just say that my pregnancy emotions are the main reason my hubby does not want any more kids!
Yep, I cried in Walmart 2 weeks ago. I blogged about it too. Not fun. Totally the same. I wanted to explain to all the gawkers that I was ok, that I would stop crying if I could, that I wasn’t as sad and pathetic as I appeared, I just couldn’t shut off the tap. Instead we just went out and sat in the car were I traumatized my kids by letting myself wail and drip snot all over the car for a good 5 minutes. Then we got some TimBits and I drove home, carefully and rationally, following all the traffic rules and hiccuping now and then. Yep, like sands through the hour glass, so are the days of our lives.
Dude. Those are my emotions on a REGULAR day! While pregnant? A THOUSAND TIMES WORSE.
“my chin (well, both of them)” that is comedy at its finest!! hahaha!! well done (not that its true on you- at least from the pictures i’ve seen!)
Keep your chin up!! (haha!)