As a society, we often think about motherhood as this beautiful experience that we view through rose-colored glasses. However, despite the commercial idea of what motherhood is- there are a lot of things that moms don’t often discuss that go on behind the scenes.
Yes, motherhood is a beautiful experience. But, I would barter that if men went through the same experience as women did-they would have a newfound appreciation for their wives. Everything about motherhood is not always peachy-keen. There are a lot of aspects of it that can be embarrassing, scary, or even gross. Despite this-you don’t tend to hear women sharing these experiences over dinner, and for good reason-the experience is traumatic.
Our society would have us believe that women are like mythical creatures who never fart, poop, or burp. It’s so odd to me, though, because we are human. Beyond just being human, motherhood only adds to those gross experiences that we are often too embarrassed to share.
For many women, there is post-part incontinence, which means that at least for a while after we have given birth, we have a harder time holding in our pee. This can lead to leakage. On top of that, after 9 months without a period, after the baby is born, there is a long period that is quite heavy and extremely uncomfortable.
And don’t even get me started on the post-partem hormones, that cause you to feel sweaty, that cause breakout, and in many cases, extreme depression. The slightest thing can cause a river of tears beyond our control. No one ever thinks about it- but after you’ve had a tiny human living in you for months, the experience of childbirth is made all the more traumatic.
During childbirth, it’s quite typical to rip either vaginally or anally-which requires extra care, otherwise, we risk infection.
However, it isn’t just down under that we struggle with-there is also breastfeeding, which can cause leaky nipples and painful lesions.
Even after giving birth and postpartum struggles, our dirty jobs don’t end there. We are constantly blowing tiny noses, and wiping poopy-butts and it’s not always glamorous. For many of us- it can be hard to share this because being pregnant can make you feel so insecure at times. However, I would barter if most husbands had to walk a day in our shoes-they would appreciate us so much more.