When parenting turns you into an teary person
I used to be quite hardy. Until I lived in a girls boarding house for 2 years, turned soppy and would cry at more things than I ever would have done before. But I did have history.
As a child my mum banned me from watching Lassie because I would cry, and I did have a tendency to bawl my eyes out when reading books or watching films like International Velvet. In my defence there are animals involved in both of these.
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Living with a load of girls certainly brings the emotions to the fore. While I’ve never been a teary person, certain things will set me off, usually due to soppy TV shows or films. I’d be hiding being my arm, trying to stifle tears or wiping my eyes while my brother chuckled at my soppiness. Or a wedding would do it. It could be a happy or a sad situation.
Given I never really saw myself having a child when I was younger, I certainly never thought having one would impact my emotions. I’ve had a fairly easy life, although did lose my dad when I was 3, and then my mum 4.5 years ago. But I’m not really a sensitive type. I’m all about facts, what’s fair and rght and wrong, and don’t take things to heart. I certainly don’t stew on things that people might say. I’m pretty hard skinned compared to a lot of other people – let’s face it, if people are being nasty, then they’re the ones with the issue. I’m strong enough and confience enough to assert myself when needed.
But I find myself getting emotional, even when it’s someone else’s child taking part in something. Watching a child achieve something is a pretty special thing.
My worst is at swimming. N has never been the strongest swimmer so I know how hard he’s found learning to swim. But then I see other children achieving something for the first time, it does make me well up.
The first child in a Water Babies class to swim 10 metres without the float of parent support.
The children swimming 25m for the first time even when N didn’t achieve it himself.
It just makes me choke up a little.
The usual parental emotional spots in the year don’t always do it for me. The first day at school for example. Everyone warns you take the tissues because everyone cries. But I didn’t. Yes it was emotional but everything had been building up to that first day and I knew N was ready for what was to come. I was more emotional about him leaving both nurseries than starting school.
The Nativity plays and other school performances are emotional. There’s laughter and trying to hold back the tears. Sometimes you never know whether it’s the laughter creating the tears but at least there’s a few of us feeling the same.
I also cry a lot more at television shows since having N. Now I get emotional over the smallest thing whether it’s a sporting event, a special achievement, an act of kindness or just watching someone else getting emotional. Maybe it’s that we work off other people’s emotions.
And I can’t forget about N’s books. [amazon_textlink asin=’0007532210′ text=’David Walliams books.’ template=’ProductLink’ store=’bubbandme04-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’affc485c-628c-11e8-b0f6-2bdffa4f1054′]  They’re so poignant at the end. Gangsta Granny. Mr Stink. Let me tell you, it’s hard to read a book out loud, trying to not cry and sound normal. N does ask sometimes why it’s sad, so we can talk about it and how some stories relate to people we might know.
It does feel a bit silly that I get more emotional about other people’s achievements and fictional stories on television, than I do in real life happenings that go on in our life. But maybe that’s just my way. It’s a part of me.
Have you found you’ve changed emotionally since having children?
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