Many Parents Regret Their Baby Name Choice, New Poll Finds

In an era in which names such as Atticus and Luna have taken over for, say, Adam and Leslie, it's not always easy to be an expectant parent. Figuring out the balance between a moniker that might end up feeling tragically trendy versus one that seems safe, but possibly common and boring, is a real concern. It turns out many parents regret their baby name choice, a study finds, and this is so sad to hear, because choosing a baby name should be a joyful process for a couple.

As Fatherly reported, a new poll out from UK motherhood site Channel Mum found that many parents ended up regretting their baby name choice. Among the top reasons why? Mainly, the name became too popular. Some parents were dismayed that many other parents used the same name around the same time, or that celebrities gave their progeny the same name.

But the converse was also a problem: The name was so unique, it was difficult for others to understand or spell. Yet a third category of complaint revolved around the fact that the parent ended up feeling the moniker didn't suit the child.

Overall, Channel Mum found that a not-inconsiderable portion of participants — 28 percent — regretted choosing their name, with over one in 10 noting that their (I guess older) children expressed dislike for their own names.

"Picking your baby name is one of the most important parts of becoming a parent — and it's also something which everyone from friends and family to total strangers has an opinion on," Channel Mum's baby naming expert, SJ Strum, told the site.

"Celebrity trends mean there are an ever-growing list of baby names to choose from, but this also means more opportunities to choose a name which you, or your child, then learn to loathe," Strum added.

This makes me so sad, because a baby name should feel really special, and really right, both for your sense of your baby's personality, and your sense of values or family. There are many cultures in which conferring a baby name comes with a traditional ceremony because of this significance, as Culture Ready noted.

It's also surprising to note the number of dissatisfied customers who went with a name perhaps inspired by a celebrity's baby name choice, or else used a name that a short time later became huge after a star grabbed onto it.

In this high-stakes world of getting a baby moniker just right, there are even those calling themselves "baby name experts" to help confused parents-to-be!

And with more expectant moms such as Miranda Kerr (whose last baby, Hart, had a cool moniker), Kylie Jenner's adorable Stormi, and new kids on the block like Jana Kramer's little Jace all over social media, there are even more trends and celebs to follow with each passing day, as more moms announce the good news and more babies get creative names.

Unless you're a royal and can only go with a fab classic (think Kate Middleton's brood), it seems to me that it's a tough game these days to come up with a not-overdone name that will both bring you joy as a parent but, not be too old-school.

And while the baby-naming competition does seem stiffer since the days when my bigger kids were born, it was always tricky. (I remember feeling like TV star Marcia Cross stole my middle baby's name, Eden, for one of her twins the year after. The name got super-big for a while, and it did sting.)

Hopefully, parents-to-be who read this poll will think carefully before grabbing a name just because Victoria Beckham or Gwyneth Paltrow once used it. After all, a kid will have to use it on a daily basis for the rest of their lives.