That second pink line was faint, but it was there. I was pregnant! And immediately a switch flipped in my mind. Suddenly, rushing to get ready and speeding to work didn’t matter. The dishes in the sink didn’t matter. All the little things that caused me stress on a daily basis no longer seemed as important.
Although I faced a lot of anxiety in pregnancy, it also weirdly helped give me perspective on the things that really matter and allowed me to stress less about the things that I thought were important, but in reality they were things that I stressed myself out about for no good reason.
Despite all of the “what ifs” during pregnancy, becoming a mom helped me make several shifts to stress less.
Pregnancy made me put myself first
I immediately understood that I have to be okay so my baby can be okay. That meant putting myself and my health first. One of the biggest myths we’re sold is that taking care of yourself first is selfish, but it’s not true. Especially as moms, we have to carry so much. If we don’t take care of ourselves, we will burn out.
I haven’t perfected taking care of myself first, yet. The balancing act of motherhood, work, wife, friend, and just in general being a person makes it difficult. But, pregnancy definitely made me realize that taking care of myself is a love language. It’s how I show my family, friends, and baby that I care. And it’s how I can teach my daughter to live, too. If she sees me taking care of myself, I hope that she’ll do the same when she’s older.
Pregnancy Made Me Slow Down
Goodbye rushing out the door to a job I hated, cleaning like a mad woman when guests come over, and always being on the go in this rat race culture.
Hello taking my time, making peace with my mess, and creating a lifestyle that fits me and my family. During pregnancy, I learned to slow down because my baby and body needed me to. And, I’m thankful for that. I started to move more slowly (thanks to round ligament pain and my giant belly), speak more slowly, and take my time with thoughts and actions.
Pregnancy Showed Me What Really Matters To Me
I started questioning everything when I was pregnant.
Am I where I want to be? Am I doing something meaningful? What’s my purpose beyond motherhood? What kind of life do we really want? Am I working toward creating that life? What is going to give me the most time to enjoy being a mom?
My baby put everything in perspective. I no longer wanted to live in the rat race and an extremely stressful job with people who were constantly degrading one another. I wanted to help other moms. I wanted to help moms see the beauty in this sometimes messy process of becoming a mom. I wanted to hold them and lift them up.
I was privileged and had a safety net that allowed me to not go back to that horrible job after maternity leave and start my own business. I recognize not everyone has this ability.
But let pregnancy put things in perspective for you in whatever way that makes sense for you. Does it mean not stressing out about the little things? Changing the idea you had about the life you wanted? Changing jobs for a higher income or more time at home? Whatever that looks like for you, let pregnancy allow you to explore it.
Here you have it, mamas! All the ways pregnancy helped me stress less. Pregnancy is transformative. We’re growing our babies, but we’re also growing ourselves. Keep watering and nourishing yourself and your growth!
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