Becoming a mum is an event that can turn the world upside down, even if we think we’re ready for it. It simply changes our life. This little being we have verifies our convictions and hopes. We handle motherhood differently, we have better and worse days, successes and parental failures. It comes with a whole range of new experiences and emotions. It’s an emotional roller coaster. From helplessness and fear when a toddler keeps crying all night, joy at the first step, nerves and outbursts of rage when a teenager rebels. To pride or surprise when seeing who our child grew to be.
Motherhood is a challenge
Becoming a mum is like a training ground and a minefield in one. You have to watch you and your child’s every step. You have pressurising expectations, good advice and criticism coming from your surroundings and from yourself. You also carrying your child’s world, often alone and you become their whole world too. All this, despite its charm, can be overwhelming. At some point you should let the child go on alone and let them make mistakes. Without this, they won’t learn important life lessons and how to deal with them. How can you handle all this? If this isn’t a real challenge and heroism, then what is?
We have superpowers – let’s appreciate ourselves
So, without undue modesty, appreciate the superpowers you have as a mum. Grasping what seems beyond reach, being an oracle, possessing all sorts of knowledge and having hands that sooth pain and fear. Talk to your child about heroes and let them see one in you. Recall people or characters who have acted heroically (e.g. from fairy tales, films, literature, etc.). What are their character traits, what distinguishes them? Who do you think a hero is? What are the qualities of a hero? Can anyone be a hero? Talk about them. Explain that a hero is not only a person who performs extraordinary acts, for example, saving others’ lives. Each of us can be a hero every day, because to be a hero, you don’t have to be big and strong, you only need a big heart. You can refer to the coronavirus and give examples of heroic doctors who treat patients despite difficult conditions and work for many hours, as well as examples of ordinary people who, for example, help the elderly by shopping for them.