Ninety per cent of new parents don't let on how hard they're finding the first few weeks with a baby, pretending everything's just fine. And 41% of us even turn down offers of help from family or friends – in case they think we're not coping.

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These stats. from a new survey by Kiddicare, will probably come as no surprise to anyone who's muddled their way though the often-tear-splattered days of early parenthood, but it is sobering that not only do 79% of us find being a parent harder than we expected, a staggering 92% of us say they also feel pressure to come across to others as the ‘perfect parent’.

Top of the list of the greatest challenges of life with a newborn comes sleep (no kidding!), followed closely by money issues, relationships issues, pressure to 'know all the answers' and simply getting out of the house.

In response, Kiddicare have launched a What I Wish I'd Known (WIWIK) campaign, asking real mums and celebs to share the sanity-saving advice they wish they'd known when they gave birth.

"Know that breastfeeding determines your day completely!" tweeted Paralympian cyclist new-mum Sarah Storey. While another mum said, "I wish someone had told me about colic – and said that, though it seems to go on for ever, it will pass."

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