The feelings and emotions of being a Mum is one of those things I cannot explain; I have no adjectives to accurately capture the joy I feel sometimes and the doubt I feel other times!
Sometimes I feel as if I have a host of emotions coming at me all at once and I have no idea how to deal with them all!
Sometimes I feel like I got it all figured out then the little one throws me a curve ball and I’m back to learning how to figure it all out again!
Through all the uncertainty and navigation, I must say:
I absolutely love being a Mum!
However, there are still some things I still struggle with.
1. Dealing with Change
Have you ever been thrown into a new situation, figured your way through it, felt like you had it all covered and then the situation changes? Yup! That’s a day in the life of a Mum! There’s no guarantee that the routine that worked last night would work the next day, so you wing it as you go!
Motherhood has taught me a lot about embracing change and flexibility. Being so structured, flexibility does not come naturally to me. I love routines and being in the know of next steps! (Control Freak much?!)
However, this process has taught me how to completely put all my trust in God especially in those times when I feel like breaking down, it has also taught me not to box God and expect him to do things in a certain way because his plans are way grander than mine!
2. Mom Guilt
Being a working mum, my son goes to daycare (Watch his first day here). Leaving him there for a few hours gives me a pang of sadness and guilt that I cannot quite describe. It felt like I should have been there for him instead of the caregivers and hunnie! tears were shed!
The reality is, your girl’s got to work to pay those bills! But knowing this fact doesn’t minimize the guilt I feel sometimes. Comment below if you can relate!
What I do and continue to do is put my son in God’s hands because God loves him even more than I do, so he’ll take care of him when I cannot be physically present with him. Something else that I do is, I read him his favorite books before I leave for work, while I’m at work, I picture the big smile I would get from him when I pick him up after work, and I spend time with him after work doing his favorite things before bedtime.
What other tips do you have to help deal with Mum Guilt?
3. Unsolicited Advice
Everyone seems to have an idea of how you should raise your kid.
I remember when my son was a newborn, whenever he cried, the popular suggestion was to ‘Feed the baby’ even though he had just eaten 2 minutes earlier!!
Let’s not get started on the formula or breast milk dilemma or the bottle feeding or breast-feeding war!
Bottomline is someone ALWAYS has an opinion on which option is better for my kid because that’s what worked for theirs!
When I get unsolicited advice, I remember that God didn’t give me the same baby as this ‘Special Adviser’ also, even though it may be difficult in the moment not to get defensive and say something snarky, I remember that not all solicited advice is terrible, it might be the Holy Spirit nudging someone my way to pay attention to something. I have learned to let peace be my umpire and be assertive!
Hey momma! Are you in a similar season? Share which areas of motherhood you find challenging and any helpful tips you may have!
Thanks for reading!
God Bless you Tremendously
Akhere
Photos: Pexels.com
