This is the little beach house I lived in when I became a mother 25 years ago. It's changed a bit over the years- new paint, new windows, more foliage- but the essential structure is still there. Much like the process of matrescense, a life transition that happens not in one swift moment upon delivering a baby, but over time, as we are born into motherhood and we get to know ourselves anew; a shift similar to adolescence that is fraught with fluctuating hormones and emotions and identities and capacities. It's challenging for modern culture to give space and time for this transition. We want to "get back to normal" and be productive and get a full night's sleep. But perhaps it is only in the slowing down, only in the dark quiet of the wee morning hours, that we can encounter our new capacities, our changing selves, and allow ourselves to both grieve what was and rejoice in what we are becoming, and have become. Motherhood doesn't happen in a moment; it happens over months and years in its own way for each of us. And yet our essence, the core structure of us, remains standing even while expressing itself differently, like this little house. If you're in this liminal space, you're not alone. 🖤 #matresence
#motherhood #transition #postpartum #mothering #identity #parent #becoming #shift #postpartumforlife #birth #structure #babies #postpartumdoula #liminal
#postpartumjourney
THIS IS SO IMPORTANT! I say to every class of expectant parents or doulas I teach that not everyone immediately "falls in love" with their baby or parenthood... it can take time. There is a wide range of normal emotions and reactions when becoming a new parent, and its not always sunshine and rainbows. We need to get real about this and release the shame. 🖤
#Repost @nytparenting
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The bond with your baby is supposed to be magical and instantaneous, or so @janceedunn once thought. But when the nurse asked her if she wanted to hold her baby after a tough emergency c-section, she didn't feel what she'd hoped she would. Jancee wrote:
"All I wanted to do was lurch off the operating table and hide somewhere. 'I can’t do it,' I croaked. The nurse nodded, and put Sylvie into the eager arms of Tom, who fell swooningly in love. As I recovered in the hospital and then returned home, I expected that at any minute, my maternal feelings would flow, and we’d resemble the enraptured moms and babies I saw in diaper cream ads. Instead, for the first few weeks, I felt the same fuzzy disconnect as I held and fed her."
Jancee isn't alone. She spoke to experts and moms about what's "normal" when it comes to bonding with your baby, and how important it is to ditch the guilt. Read her essay at the link in bio.
#postpartum #parenthood #momlife #dadlife #motherhood #fatherhood #newbaby
“Cultivating a happy, healthy, secure family is a work of art, and a revolutionary act.”
- Pamela Slim
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BABYMOON: PREPARING FOR BABY & POSTPARTUM 🌙 November 2nd 1-5:30pm ✨
Get the information, support and guidance you need to care for your newborn and navigate the postpartum time!
This 4.5 hour class is taken prenatally, ideally between 30-35 weeks. We will cover postpartum planning and support; changing identity, roles and relationships; breastfeeding; infant needs, cues and soothing techniques; sleep scenarios; and more!
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SIGN UP TODAY at HomegrownBabies.com
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📷 @jojocooperphotography
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#doula #doulas #doulasaredope #birthdoula #postpartumdoula #birthsupport #support #birthworker #birthwork #birth #normalizebirth #postpartumsupport #postpartumjourney #lifeafterbirth #birthwithoutfear #birthwithcourage #homegrownbabies #homegrownfamilies #birthphotography #birthphotographer #wevegotyourback #parenthood #motherhood #mama #birthofamama #doulasbenefiteveryone #doulaservices #newborn
New parents are often so, so desperate for sleep, they'll try anything, including in-bed sleepers such as the DockATot, Snuggle Nest, and others. I still vividly remember almost 25 years ago, when my daughter was an infant, I was so desperate for sleep that I propped her up in her car seat and put it beside my bed because she just couldn't sleep laying flat on her back. Parents, I get it, I've been there. And now, as an educator, it's my job to provide evidence-based information. I know this post may spark a lot of emotions, but it's so important to get this information out there in order for parents to make truly informed decisions, so here we go... In-bed sleepers have not only not been tested for sleep safety, they have been linked to fatalities by the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Medical professionals have stated that they pose a threat to babies sleeping in them. For more information, please visit Consumer Product Safety Commission, and read the recent article in Consumer Reports magazine.
For safe sleep resources, see La Leche Laugue's Safe Sleep Seven, and Dr. James McKenna's research. Here's to getting (safe) sleep! 😪💤😴🛌
#sleep #safesleep #newparents #evidencebased #fourthtrimester #postpartum #infantsleep #postpartumjourney #cosleeping #bedsharing #babies
