What shocked you when you had your first baby?

So Beyonce’s shocked to find that, having had a baby, she no longer has time to beautify herself. She now cuts her own hair and wears flat shoes (how long will that last, I wonder?).

Still looking pretty glossy there, Bey.

But still, the fact that mothers no longer have time ad infinitum to spend on pampering and preening must have come as a terrible shock to her – as most things do when you have your first baby. Even more so if, like Beyonce (and I, although I don’t wish to compare my career to hers lest she look like a slacker), you’re used to calling the shots in a career before you have your first baby.

So, what shocked you when you first gave birth? Thinking back seven years, here’s what surprised me when I first gave birth to DD:

-          How much breast-feeding hurt. I had no idea.

-          How much indignity there is in giving birth – and how little I cared about the indignity.

-          How much there is that mothers never tell non-mothers.

-          The fact that I could no longer eat the in-flight meal – or even drink gin – on flights.

-          How little sleep I could get by on.

-          How sick babies can mess up the best-laid of plans.

-          The fact that the world goes on, no matter how rubbish you feel.

-          How much I could love another human being.

I’d love to hear yours.