Story highlights Struggles in early parenthood can affect whether people have another child, study finds

The effect is strongest with highly educated parents

Daphne Sashin is a producer with the CNN social discovery team. Reach her on Twitter @dsashin or weigh in with CNN Parents on Facebook.

(CNN) If they're being honest, most mothers will tell you that no matter how badly you want a child, the transition to parenthood is hard. Really hard.

According to a recent study, the drop in happiness experienced by parents after the birth of first child was larger than the experience of unemployment, divorce or the death of a partner.

The ickiness you feel in pregnancy as your body becomes alien to you. The childbirth, and the healing after. The breastfeeding struggles -- oh, the struggles and the tears. The isolation of being home alone all day with a crying infant while your partner is at work.

At least, that's what it was like for me, when my first child was born in 2011.

A new study suggests when people experience early parenthood -- pregnancy, childbirth and the baby days -- as particularly stressful, they are less likely to want to do it again.

Read More