Becoming a mother is one of the fastest ways to turn your life completely upside down. There’s being up all night, the hormone changes, and don’t even get me started on all the poop. It’s a rewarding experience, but it also comes with its own trials.
Ingebritt ter Veld captures these experiences perfectly on the site, Hippe-Geboortekaartjes .
She hit the nail right on the head with this one.
Pregnancy really messes with your bladder in the worst way possible.
You don’t know a good nights sleep until you’ve had to get up a hundred times in the middle of the night to pee.
Since we’re on the topic of sleep, I’m just gonna leave this here.
If you’re reading this and you’re pregnant for the first time — make sure you get as many pillows as you can.
You’re gonna need ’em! Amirite, mamas?
She’s totally right!
Embrace the sleep while you still can!
Your emotions will get the better of you.
And that’s OK — you’re growing a human being for goodness’ sake. You’re allowed to have moments of weakness here and there, you know.
Being pregnant can be a minefield of avoiding creeps.
There are so many things that we go through during pregnancy that we can all relate to.
People that give you the creeps, might just be at the top of everyone’s list — or at least on it.
A pregnant woman’s worries are never ending.
You hear all these horror stories from the pregnant woman who have come before you… and there really is no preventing any of these things.
You always think it won’t be you.
But it probably will be. According to Parents.com , “The fear of pooping during labor “comes up nine times out of ten — at least!” says Marie Bigelow, a staff doula at Boise Women’s Health & Birth Center in Idaho. “And having a bowel movement during pushing is extremely common.”
Once you’re in labor, though — you’ll quickly realize that pooping is the least of your worries.
Afterwards, you’ll get the small comfort from a giant maternity pad, though.
Things that would have once totally grossed you out just become second nature all of a sudden.
And a totally normal part of everyday life for you, believe it or not.
After your baby’s blessed arrival, your body will do things (or not do things) that might make you want to pull your hair out…
Postpartum is scarier than any horror movie.
Your body goes through a lot during birth, and it doesn’t all heal itself immediately, even though in movies and television it all looks so glamorous post-baby.
YOU MUST resist the urge to pull your hair out — it’s gonna start falling out anyway.
Enjoy those memorable firsts…
Even though some of them are completely awful!
Being a mom is all about taking the good with the bad.
You’ll never look at your breasts the same way again.
And you won’t care because you’ll know that you grew a human being and the miracle that is your body will provide food to keep that baby alive.
So to sum it up — you’re basically a super hero.
You’ll see more vomit in the first year of your child’s life than all those years spent partying with friends.
That’s right — drunk puking has nothing on a baby with a full stomach and impeccable aim.
Pumping should be an Olympic sport.
Seriously… no one knows hard work and dedication like a mother who has just pumped for hours to produce a week’s worth of breast milk to freeze.
No one knows panic more than a mother who is a work and forgot the adapter for her breast pump.
What goes up — or should I say out — will come down.
When you’re a new mom, sleep is probably not going to be something you get a lot of.
And that makes the entire world more stressful. Don’t let the big problems get you down too much, mamas, you’ll be sleeping properly again someday.
No matter what the trials of motherhood are, the love you have for your children makes everything totally worth it.
Just seeing their smiling faces or listening to them calling out for you makes every poopy diaper, every all-night crying episode, and the total destruction of your body seem like absolutely nothing.
Embrace motherhood for all that it is — but if you’re struggling or having a bad day, just know that there are a million other mothers out there feeling just like you are. You are not alone.
Moral of this story: