The first place I was called Mom was at my prenatal appointments. It probably all started in the doctor’s office. One of the (many) little failures of the prenatal and postpartum care period for me was being referred to as Mom at my birth center. It was not endearing to me — it felt lazy. I wanted them to look at my chart and call me by my first name. It seemed like just another thing about the experience that was centered on the baby rather than the person who was growing the baby. I wanted to feel like they were looking at me as an individual, not just another of the hundreds of moms who visited their office every month.
