Dear brand new Mom,
Today I ran into you and I saw in your eyes something so real and something so raw. I saw how fulfilled you were with love and gratitude for this brand new amazing life that you created. Your baby is just so beautiful! But right along with that I saw your feelings of doubt, of exhaustion and of complete overwhelm. Today I wanted to reach out and hug you and tell you to go and take a long nap. Today I want you to know that I know exactly how you’re feeling.
And guess what? It’s okay.
Three years ago today I was you. I was home with a baby who was only single digit days old. She ate nonstop. She cried nonstop and she rarely, if ever, slept. The adrenaline of meeting her had subsided and in its place were all kinds of feelings I never expected. I was in pain and I was sore on every inch of my now deflated body. I was more tired than I ever imagined. I was somewhat sad that my once-controlled life seemed to have vanished completely. I was feeling so damn lonely. And I was beyond embarrassed that I felt any of this. I couldn’t stop thinking that I spent my whole life wanting this… how dare I feel this way when I was so incredibly lucky to be a mom.
New mom, I want you to know that this entourage of feelings will be gone in a blink, and in its place will be a baby who you get to know better than yourself. In its place will come giggles and full nights of sleep. In its place will come confidence, slowly but surely, about how to raise this sweet baby of yours. And in its place will come healing, control (somewhat) and believe it or not, a sense of sadness that those brand new baby days have come and gone.
But for now, just take it one hour at a time. Just breath in and breath out. Just forget about your bathroom that needs cleaned, and forget about that meal you were going to cook. Just forget about those Pinterest perfect baby announcements and forget about those thank you notes. Just forget about breastfeeding for one or two feedings and get some sleep (I promise your baby will not grow warts if he or she has formula).
New mom, you are on a brand new journey and the world wants you to know that it’s okay to feel the way you feel. We all know that you feel that way not because you are a bad mom, but you feel this way for quite the opposite reason. You feel this way because You are an incredible mom…. You are a beautiful mom… You are a grateful mom… New mom, the world is lucky to have you and so is your sweet new baby.
xoxo
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