By Sarah Noble
I always wanted to be a mum. I knew it in my soul. However, when the moment arrived, I was caught off guard. It wasn’t what I expected! It did not come naturally to me. I spent many sleepless nights in those early days, scrolling the internet, talking to other mums online who also had a newborn. It was comforting knowing that I wasn’t alone. It was nice to know everything I was experiencing was normal. Then things started to get nasty.
As our babies got older, the competing, the comparison and the judgements began.
“Is your baby sleeping through the night yet?” “My baby has been crawling for months,” “You AREN’T vaccinating?!” On and on it went, milestone after milestone.
Motherhood isn’t a competition. It’s not a race. Motherhood is a fragile time, it’s a time of transition. Many women are struggling silently with anxiety, depression, pressure, overwhelm, and here we are berating each other about where our babies sleep, how we choose to parent.
I thought motherhood would be supportive, embracing.
I thought I’d be a part of a secret society of beautiful woman that accepted each other, that supported each other. How naïve I was.