Agreed. There is no way I could explain to my past-self how parenting would change my life. In fact if I did a good job of explaining it then I would have been

Agreed. There is no way I could explain to my past-self how parenting would change my life. In fact if I did a good job of explaining it then I would have been terrified of becoming a parent ('what do you mean I can't go to a bar any night of the week till 5am!?'). However there is nothing to be afraid of. Priorities shift. Things that were important to you beforehand, things you thought defined your sense of self, or you couldn't live without - no longer matter as much. You find a new focus, a new center. Until that point you're still the center of your own universe in a large sense. After a baby is born you're in orbit around that center.