I spent my days at home, hoping I could sleep and lying to my friends as they called to check on me. I was stressed, hormonal, and irritable, and I felt cooped up in my bed, unsure if I’d ever feel normal again. I figured those first weeks with the baby would be difficult, but I had no idea how difficult they would be. One thing I learnt with my second pregnancy is that knowing what to expect really helps! So here are some pointers on what you can expect as a new mom.

• It takes time to return to normalcy.

Many women are surprised to hear that they will continue to appear pregnant after giving birth. Six weeks after giving birth, many women are still not down to their pre-pregnancy weight. It will take some time. Don’t quietly judge the body—remember what it just accomplished: creating and delivering a kid! Have a good attitude to remind yourself that your body does not have to be like this for the rest of your life. Attend a stroller-cise workshop for new moms to get some fresh air (and meet new people!) while slimming down.

• It’s a loop!

Someone advises you that you will not be able to relax, because they are not misleading. For the first three weeks, the baby will feed every two hours during the day and night—and that is an ambitious estimate! You’ll hear the scream of your hungry baby waking you up just as you’re about to drift off to sleep for the third time that night. Consider the alarm clock going off every couple of hours for the next five weeks. It’s not enjoyable. So, expect this before you give birth, so you are ready to deal with it.

You may also read – Preterm baby care tips for a new mom!

• Take the small wins in life.

When our pre-kids’ lives appeared just a few months ago, adjusting to motherhood can be tough. We recall the days when we could stay up late, nap wherever we liked, and eat for as long as we wanted. It can seem almost difficult to reconcile that existence with our current one. Instead, focus on minor victories. Find quick, doable ways to integrate your previous life into your current life as a parent. Don’t be afraid to run an errand with the boy, no matter how tight the time span is—at the very least, you did it. And if you know, you’ll need to attend to her in a few minutes, make yourself a cup of tea, and savor each drink as she sleeps. Shop for cotton onesies and baby hoodies for your little one by yourself.

• Breastfeeding can get tough for a new mom.

If you plan to breastfeed, you can face a variety of difficulties, such as the baby not latching, uncomfortable feedings, or a loss of milk supply. Society portrays breastfeeding as easy, but it is often more difficult. Always have a muslin wrap handy during feeding.  If you’re having difficulty breastfeeding, it’s important to get treatment as soon as possible to avoid long-term complications. Consult a lactation nurse, the baby’s pediatrician, or the hospital care service for advice

• Embrace the confusion and be easy on yourself

Feeding and caring for a newborn baby can cause the most discomfort for many mothers. Should you breastfeed or bottle-feed your baby? Is your baby putting out enough wet diapers? Is she still alive and well? (Believe it or not, you’ll be checking your sleeping baby’s breath more often than you can imagine.) The questions go on and on, and they consume you—because, like any mother, you’re worried about your kid. Just concentrate on what matters most: feeding both the baby and yourself! When a new mom comes home with her new son or daughter, it is advisable to be optimistic about what she will accomplish. The new moms have three fundamental responsibilities: Feed their daughter, feed themselves, and bathe one of their children on occasion.

Last but not least, it’s okay if you don’t adapt to motherhood immediately. There’s now a small human that resembles you, sleeps almost all of the time, coats you with spit-up and feces, and scarcely recognizes your presence. It’s not unusual to ask why you haven’t yet formed a connection. Remind yourself that getting to know each other takes time.

Author Bio:

I am Andrea Micheal, a post-graduate in humanities and communications and an inquisitive person who loves writing. I’m working for Tiny Twig, and my forte is digital marketing and everything that has to do with phones and screens. I am someone who believes that one person can make a change, and that’s precisely why I took up writing, which is the best tool to communicate these days. I have a decade of experience in writing and marketing, and I still find myself learning new things about it, which I want to share with my readers.

Thanks for visiting our blog. I hope you liked the post and found it helpful. Please do share it further with someone who might find it helpful.

The post Life as a new mom – What to expect? appeared first on Growing With Nemit.

Hello to all my lovely readers, as promised I am bringing to you the 1st Bonus Post of The Mom Series for the month of December, The Breastfeeding Journey. I feel so proud and elated right now while sharing this story of an awesome mom that I am falling short of words. What to say about her? Have you ever felt battling with something big that once you are over with it you decide to work towards it to spread the awareness, so that no one else goes through the similar struggles.

Well, this mom is one such person, she faced challenges right after her delivery but she was determined and never lost hope. Let’s read her very inspiring story in her own words.

My Breastfeeding Journey

–By Sapna Krishnan

When I was pregnant, I wasn’t prepared for anything and had zero knowledge about the whats and the hows. Also, I worked until my 7th month, quit and then went to my hometown for my delivery. There I had a c-section and was in the ICU where my daughter, Tanirika was brought to me 2 hours post-surgery.

While at the hospital – The first latch

I had no idea what getting the right latch was during breastfeeding. The nurse tried to help but gave up after 3 tries. She asked my mother to take the baby back to the room and bring her later to try again. I had no clue what was happening.

She was brought back an hour later, maybe because she was crying in hunger. We tried again but she didn’t latch. It was a new nurse on shift and she shouted at my mother for not being able to help me. It broke my heart and being high on hormones, I unleashed myself on the nurse. She apologized and my daughter was taken back again, hungry.

It slowly started to sink in that my baby was hungry and wasn’t getting my feed. The hospital did not even start her on formula. I was moved to the room a little later. Seeing how helpless we were, the nurses in charge of that floor came to help us. And we got the first latch, although not right. It hurt but I kept at it thinking that was normal. My cousin who stayed back asked me to sit through it because feeding the baby was more important than the pain of a wrong latch.

Back to home – Support from BSIM

It was all good at the hospital but hell broke loose when we got home. The pain was unbearable and my daughter had begun to cluster feed. I was advised against nursing while lying down. The first night and she cried her lungs through it because I couldn’t keep her on my breast any longer and I was told I didn’t have enough milk because it wasn’t leaking.

I cried for the next few hours with the baby wailing in my cousin’s arms. I felt like a horrible and incapable mother already, on day 4. My cousin assured me that it is going to be fine and I just need to eat and drink well and my body will make the necessary milk. Determined to only breastfeed my baby, I ate 9 times a day. Oh yes, I wanted to throw up most times but I had to do it if that is what is going to help me breastfeed. Nothing else mattered. Every time she cried, she was on the breast. All other times, I was eating. Sleep? Well, I had no idea, because I kept alarms to wake up to eat/drink.

This went on for a month and then I couldn’t handle it. I stumbled upon Breastfeeding Support for Indian Mothers (BSIM) on Facebook. I studied every post and went through all the documents, links and websites. Finally, I saw the light at the end of the tunnel. Everything felt normal. It may not sound right, but you feel a little better when you know you aren’t alone. The baby was on the breast more, my meals reduced and I became human again.

The Next Hurdle –  To Nurse In Public (NIP)

I had no idea how people did it. Someone suggested a front open (with zipper at the center) dress and although I thought it was a brilliant idea, reality hit when I had to use it. I wasn’t comfortable exposing and the dress did just that and I ended up being confined to the 4 walls.

It drove me mad and I had to do something about it. Why should I stop living because I had a baby? I did a little research and started my own brand in nursing wear by the name, T&S – Threads & Shuttles. Slowly, I realized while I was enjoying what I was doing, I wanted to do more. My hard time around breastfeeding was because of no knowledge around it; thankfully my family was pro-breastfeeding but wasn’t aware of the right techniques.

But there are so many parents who are struggling a lot because of the myths that a new mother is brainwashed with. Breastfeeding requires a lot of dedication in the first year and with the right support and guidance, it gets smoother by the day.

Keeping this in mind, I decided to bring forth the breastfeeding journeys of many inspiring mothers through my blog, Threads & Shuttles. If it helps even one mother to breastfeed her baby, I think I have won it all.

You are definitely winning it Sapna. Spreading the awareness by bringing out the inspirational breastfeeding stories of many mothers, you are doing a great job. Thank you so much for sharing your story with us.

I loved reading Sapna’s breastfeeding story, hope you all liked it too. Show her some love by leaving your comments in the below section. Sharing the post is always appreciated.

You can read all the stories of The Mom Series from November >> Here <<

The post The Breastfeeding Journey – First Latch to Nursing In Public appeared first on Growing With Nemit.

Hi friends, let’s welcome December with this lovely story of a mother who has found her source of joy and learning in motherhood. This post is special as it is written by the person who actually gave me the idea of doing The Mom Series. Well, and the best part is she herself has no idea about it. Time to reveal!

So, one day we were having a normal chat and she appreciated me for my work, then she said something which made me think about it over the next 2 days. She said whatever I am writing on my blog, she can write that too but couldn’t as she herself doesn’t get such ideas.

It made me ponder on her comment and I realized that she was right. I am no one special, just a mother who loves to share her experience, in the hope that someone reading it could get benefitted or someone going through the similar situations can feel relieved that she’s not the only one. And if we look at the bigger picture, don’t you think we all mothers have some or the other kind of experiences which if shared with others can help, motivate and inspire other mothers too.

Hence the credit goes to Gunjan Bhatla, for giving me this brilliant idea of calling out the mothers and letting them share their motherhood experience with the world. Thanks a lot, dear!

Now, it’s time to read her story in her own words.

Motherhood – My Source of Joy and Learning 

– By Gunjan Bhatla

Someone has rightly said – “Motherhood is an experiment that how long your body can function without adequate sleep or nourishment and fuelled only by caffeine and baby smiles.”

The joy of motherhood comes in moments. There would certainly be hard and frustrating times but amid the challenges, there are shining moments of joy and love. As soon as my hubby and I came to know that a new family member is on its way, we were overjoyed; even my in-laws and my maternal side were really happy.

But I was not aware that soon I would be getting experienced teachings from everyone in the family and to my surprise from few of my friends too. All sort of suggestions started flooding in.

Give me a break, at least wait for my Motherhood to begin. Typical Punjabi family, if you can imagine.

Then came the day – 4th March 2016 and I was a mother of a handsome baby boy after having more than 10 hours of labor pain and still getting a C- Section at the end. When I came out of the Operation Theatre, my mom shook me and asked, “what happened?” I was obviously clueless at that time, as I was still regaining consciousness. I remember a voice came in my ears, “Babu Hua Hai”. I was so happy, as my hubby always used to tell me if there would be a girl, then we would find a “Ghar Jamai”. I would not send her away from me, LOL.

Our family was filled with joy and all the good things were happening.

I would like to mention, at that time my Father-in-law (FIL) & Mother-in-law (MIL) were in their 80’s. And apart from me and my MIL, there was no other lady in the house. And I was literally forced by the very same situation to spend my first three months post delivery at my mother’s place. And for those three months, my hubby was not with me. He used to come and meet us on weekends.

Obviously, I was overjoyed with the arrival of my baby but could also see the hardships I would be facing while upbringing my child. And the worst part was, I became very emotional. But I had no idea what was happening with me. And as my hubby was not with me, it was very difficult for him to understand the situation.

Here the Learning phase started. After some days I read an article, which literally shocked me. It was all about the Post Partum Depression. After reading that I recalled all the incidents that happened to me. And believe me guys, it was really easy to correlate the things. Now I am aware that I was trapped in PPD. I forwarded the same article to my hubby to make him understand the situation I was in. However, things on his side were even more complex. I realized being alone for 3 months, he had gone into a kind of depression himself. This further broke me and later the situation got worse and we started having arguments and misunderstandings between us. And that was the last thing that I wanted in my life.

But thankfully, because of my mother and sister, things between us gradually improved. They used to counsel us regularly and calm us down. Thanks a ton MOM and SIS!

After 3 months, I was back to my hubby’s home. I would like to mention that my MIL used to try and help me, but could not do most of the activities due to her age. All of a sudden God gave me another dose of shock; my MIL was diagnosed with Dementia when my baby was just four months old. After that, regular visits to the hospital started. Sometimes it used to stretch for more than two weeks and I had to manage all the things at home and outside on my own.

Dementia is a broad category of brain diseases that cause a long-term and often gradual decrease in the ability to think and remember that is great enough to affect a person’s daily functioning. The most common type of dementia is Alzheimer’s disease, which makes up 50% to 70% of cases.

Source – Wikipedia

She was in bed for more than six months and later in Dec 2016 the worst thing happened; she expired. And I was left all alone. Now, the situation was, I had a 9-month-old baby in my lap with all the responsibilities of the house; as I was the only lady left. The situation was really tough!

And believe me guys, I am still learning to cope up with many things, managing all the household activities and taking care of three kids…my own baby, my hubby and my FIL (after losing his better half, he had become a kid whom we have to take care of very consciously).

Now I can say that I perfectly understand the meaning of “Learning is a never-ending process“. With my three babies of different generations, I have learned so many things:

1. Wake up with lots of energy, even after sleepless nights.
2. Have patience even if the baby is crying without any reason.
3. Handle baby’s tantrums.
4. Taking care of all the day to day needs of my hubby.
5. Taking care of an 84 years old baby.

The list is never-ending.

I pray to GOD that he gives me the required strength and blessings that I become a responsible Daughter-in-law, a loving and caring Wife and a successful Mother.

Thanks for sharing your story Gunjan, Motherhood indeed brings unlimited joy as well as lots of teaching on its way. Only after going through such myriad emotions and situations, mothers become even stronger.

This is the last post of The Mom Series and I want to thank all the awesome mothers who shared their stories to be featured on my blog. It was exciting as well as inspiring to read the stories of real moms, it made us look for hope, courage, determination, faith, and joy in our own motherhood journeys. Much power and love to all the mothers! And big thanks to all my lovely readers for making it successful, people coming back to read these stories proved they loved it as much as we loved bringing these to you.

Having said that, though I am not continuing the series for December but will definitely bring some more stories of strong mothers to end our year with lots of positiveness and inspiration in our hearts. And we will call these as the Bonus Posts.

Those of you who have missed reading the previous stories, you can read them all by clicking on the below links-

>> Stories of Hope & Courage – By Rajavee Gupta and Srishti Singh <<

>> Stories of Determination & Strong Will – By Rupal Agarwal, Rashmi Datta and Neetika Soam <<

>> Stories of Faith & Perseverance – By Richa Kaushik and Arushi Arora <<

Hope you like these stories. Do comment and share if you liked!

The post Motherhood – Source of Joy and Learning appeared first on Growing With Nemit.

“Successful mothers are not the ones who have never struggled. They are the ones who never give up, despite the struggles” – Sharon Jaynes

Hello to all my lovely readers and friends, I am sure you will agree with the above statement. I haven’t met a mother whose motherhood journey had been a smooth road, there are difficulties, challenges as well as lots of struggles that we face every day starting from Day 1 of our pregnancy, the day when a new life takes its place inside us and connects with our soul.

And today in our MAA – The Mom Series, I am bringing to you the stories of mothers who despite having many roadblocks in their journey did not give up and are getting strong and positive with each coming day. They are the true inspiration to many in the world who think that their motherhood journey is most difficult and are struggling to find their way through it.

A Survival Story

– By Richa Kaushik

Those two pink lines brought us immense pleasure as it would have to any other couple planning to bring those two little hands and two little feet and a cute smile in their lives. We were on cloud nine and wanted to hold our baby in our arms.

This good news was followed by a series of tests, ultrasounds, diet plans and lots of wishes & advises from friends and family members. Everything was fine until 14^th week (I was getting accustomed to needles, the sight of which once used to faint me!!) when I got my reports for the double marker test.

It was a normal day, I went to the school (by the way am a teacher), came home, finished my house chores and then I got a call from my gynecologist about my reports. She wanted to meet us immediately which was unusual on her part. We went there just to realize that our world was going to fall apart. The reports were bad.

It showed a high risk of Trisomy 21 (Down Syndrome). I was asked to make a choice. A choice?  A mom was told to either keep the child or abort it. I had no words. I cried my heart out and I was asking the God…Why me? I wanted to run away from there as my heart sunk and mind stopped working.

Down syndrome (DS or DNS), also known as trisomy 21, is a genetic disorder which is typically associated with physical growth delays, characteristic facial features and mild to moderate intellectual disability. The average IQ of a young adult with Down syndrome is 50, equivalent to the mental ability of an 8- or 9-year-old child, but this can vary widely.

Source – Wikipedia

Finally, I made a tough choice to go for “Amniocentesis”. We went for a counseling first and came to know that there were 1% chances of miscarriage as the baby could attack the needle or the needle might hurt the baby.

I felt as if I was the most unfortunate woman who had done so many sins. Was I going to pay off like this? But the mother inside me decided to stay strong and I was there for the process the very next day.

A needle was inserted into my uterus through my tummy. Throughout the whole procedure, I was talking to my baby as I could see her on the ultrasound screen, I was telling her to stay calm and not to attack the needle while this unwanted invasion was going on. Everything was done and I was advised to take a week’s bed rest.

Amniocentesis (also referred to as amniotic fluid test) is a medical procedure used in prenatal diagnosis of genetic disorders such as Down Syndrome and fetal infections in which a small amount of amniotic fluid, is sampled from the amniotic sac surrounding a developing fetus, and then the fetal DNA is examined for genetic abnormalities.

Source – Wikipedia

Two weeks till the reports came were the most difficult days for me as I went into depression, my appetite, thirst, sleep everything was gone. I lost 2 kg weight and I just couldn’t express my feelings to anyone. My hubby was equally tensed but I wanted to show him that I was strong.

After 2 weeks, when we got the reports, we were the happiest to-be parents as by God’s grace reports came out to be fine. I just could not thank God enough from my heart and soul. All the wishes and blessings I had ever got were bestowed on me.

My baby is a strong girl as she had to go a lot while inside my womb, which is a long story to tell some other time. But this survival story might inspire those who are going through a similar situation. I regained my health and my smiles.

She is a brave child. My strong survivor!

Dealing with Tantrums

– By Arushi Arora

Ahh!! My kid is having a tantrum and I want to scream…

Yessss I really want to scream when I find that my 20 months old baby becomes very fussy for each and everything. And I guess most parents experience it, those moments when their kids have a full-blown temper tantrum, which may involve screaming, crying, stomping feet, dropping to the ground or all of the above.

Same thing happened to me last month when we were out for a visit to the mall and suddenly my baby became fussy and stubborn and he lied down on the floor for no reason. Seriously this was too stressful for me, no matter where it happens but when it’s in a public place you feel as if everyone is looking at you and judging “what kind of a mother she is, can’t even control her kid”. And at that time you just want to curl up in a ball and scream.

Well, NO, I didn’t scream neither did I run somewhere to hide, in fact, I handled the whole situation patiently and without panicking, I asked my little one in the softest possible voice to cool down and promised him to buy his favorite cake and took him for rides to distract his mind. Because I knew, if I started yelling or screaming at him, the situation would have got even worse.

“THINK IN THE FUTURE, ACT IN THE PRESENT”

It may sound hard to do but we need to forget about other people who may be watching us during those cringe-inducing moments when our children are in the throes of a tantrum.

SHOUTING back to the child is not helpful for anyone because that’s more sensory information that is going to make them go into a NUCLEUS.

When little people are overwhelmed by big emotions, it’s our job to share our calm, not to join their chaos – L.R Knost

Think of yourself as a “TUNING FORK”, the calmer and clearer you can be, the better things will become”

We can not avoid or guess when a tantrum will hit but we can surely take beforehand measures to handle them on the spot. Here are few tips that help me in such a situation –

• Always carry their favorite toys or food while going out.
• Give them choices while in the middle of a tantrum.
• Give lots of cuddly hugs to calm them down.
• Get down to their level of understanding to control the situation.

I must say remember that strangers are just the strangers, they don’t really matter. Anyone who actually has kids would be saying a silent prayer in such a situation, that it’s you in the hot seat today. And the judgemental ones? Who needs them? Put them out of your mind and concentrate only on your kid.

These two stories will always remain close to my heart as I could connect with both on a personal level, Richa’s story is somewhat a reflection of what I had gone through, similar situations, same fears and then the moments of happiness and feeling blessed. Similarly, I can understand what Arushi wants to say through her story, my son has also entered that phase where sometimes his emotions take control of his mind.

There is so much positiveness in both the stories, how these mothers approached the difficult situations, fought the struggles and finally were able to win the battle with their faith and perseverance. Thanks, Richa and Arushi for sharing your inspirational stories with us!

This post was supposed to be the last post for The Mom Series but as we are getting so much love and huge response from you all, I may share some bonus posts in December as well though will not be able to continue the weekly motherhood stories. Why?

To know that, you will have to visit my Instagram page by clicking on this link – Growing with Nemit and check the latest post where I have mentioned my reasons. Do check that out!

And if you liked this post then don’t forget to share it! I would really appreciate that.

The post Motherhood Struggles Are Real – Success Stories of Strong Mothers appeared first on Growing With Nemit.

Hey guys, it’s Monday and I am back with another set of power packed stories written by two strong mommies for our MAA – The Mom Series. Well, we all mothers know how pregnancy and delivery takes a toll on our health if not taken care of properly. We go through a lot many dilemmas when our life takes a totally new path and sometimes we are left with choices which are in fact the most difficult ones to make. Read the stories of moms who fought depression and weight gain with their strong will and determination.

Postpartum Depression “TEARS TO CHEERS”

– By Rupal Agarwal

It’s not at all easy for me to write this. I wanted to share my story written with my heart. No one had ever told me about postpartum depression during my whole pregnancy time. You can’t guess that the new mom is suffering from PPD just by looking at her.

The problem is that people have many expectations from a new mother and they think that those first days or weeks or even months after child’s birth should be the happiest days of a mother’s life. Yes, I was overwhelmed with love for ‘Prisha’ no doubt but at the same time, I didn’t want to see anyone during those initial days as I knew they would expect me to be the happiest glowing new mom, who’s ready to face the world but no, the reality was far from that.

Postpartum depression (PPD), also called postnatal depression, is a type of mood disorder associated with childbirth. Symptoms may include extreme sadness, low energy, anxiety, crying episodes, irritability, and changes in sleeping or eating patterns. Onset is typically between one week and one month following childbirth. PPD can also negatively affect the person’s child.

Source – Wikipedia

PPD occurred when I delivered my baby girl after 9 years of marriage, no it’s not because I delivered a girl child, but because of the pressure, I received from family members to feed the baby, which I couldn’t even after trying really hard. I wished someone could understand the emotions I was going through. I went into the black hole of depression that I stopped feeling my worth and just couldn’t connect with the baby.

I remember a visit from my sister and papa and that time I just wanted to run and hide somewhere, had an emotional breakdown for no obvious reason. There was a time when I had cried for days, every other relative visiting us to bless the baby just wanted to know whether I was feeding the baby or not and that would make me so sad as well as mad. I didn’t understand why everyone has to offer an advice. I am a mother and I know what my baby needs. If I am not able to breastfeed my baby, I will bottle feed but why every other person has to come and ask the same thing over and again.

I tell you this is a crazy world. But I have just one thing to say to them.

My baby – My choice. 

I was telling myself this is just the PPD and it will pass soon. But it was not that soon for us, I had a difficult time dealing with what I was going through. Looking at my baby gave me strength and confidence that every mother does the best for her baby and so was I. Maybe I am not a perfect mother, but I am trying to do my best for her. For the world, she may be 20 months old but for me, she is 29 months old, I know her since she was in my womb.

I hit the rock bottom, I wanted to feel better for my family, my husband and most importantly for my baby. I was telling myself daily that I am a strong lady and a good mother. I fed her with the bottle and loved her every day despite my anxiety.

I didn’t expect new motherhood to be such a wild wave of emotion, that is why I wanted to share my story here. I wish I gave myself a little more grace and didn’t put so much pressure on myself. It took me almost 1.5 years to share this very personal struggle with you all. I finally decided to open up in hope that I too can help at least one person who may be dealing with this disorder that is not often recognized.

There will be so many times you feel like you have failed but in the eyes, heart and mind of your child you are SUPER MOM!

Deliver the baby but not your health 

– By Rashmi Datta

It’s been 20months since I gave birth to a sweet little girl and time is passing like anything. My baby has turned into a beautiful angel, but am I as beautiful as I was pre-delivery?

It was 4th of July 2015, when I saw the two pink lines and trust me it was the happiest day of my life, my husband and I were on cloud nine. I had to leave my job in the first trimester due to official policies and then started the weight gain. I used to be at home all day resting and taking in high-calorie food which was full of tallow.

In our Indian culture, we are supposed to eat ghee, oil and dry fruits for normal delivery and also the intake go double as the elders keep saying “you have to eat for two now”. And the problem is you can’t even say no to them.

Now when the delivery goes normal, you are again forced to eat the same dishes full of ghee and loaded with sugar. My veggies and dal always used to have extra butter added to them, even my tea was made with full cream milk. When I saw myself in the mirror almost a week after my delivery, I realized how much weight I have gained and trust me that was disheartening because I myself didn’t like to see that fat over my body.

It was the moment when I decided what I want to do. On the 25th day after delivery, I stood up and started performing the household chores. I was too firm to get back into the shape, while most women aren’t bothered about it but for me, it was an alarming call. What I gathered was that there was just a need for some extra efforts from our end.

“Health is your biggest asset, if you stay fit and healthy you live long and happy”

Getting married at the age of 26 and delivering a baby at the age of 29 made me think that getting back to my beautiful self, was a far fledged dream now. But this trauma didn’t last for long. All the credit goes to my husband who is tall, lean, has abs and is diet conscious. He is my biggest motivation. I too wanted to look healthy and pretty hence I decided to dedicate some time to the workout. Henceforth I joined aerobics and yoga classes but it wasn’t that easy to leave the baby at home and go out especially when the baby is still on breastfeed and is always looking for you, this time support came in from my Mother-in-law who supported me by taking care of the baby when I went out. Moreover, she took my side by answering back the neighbors as well who would mock me for leaving the baby at home to go to the gym.

I was delighted when my gym trainer, a week ago, appreciated me for being a mother to a 20-months-old angel. His words that you don’t seem to be rearing a child since you look so fit and in shape, made me reach the seventh heaven. So all this has been keeping me motivated and at the end, I want to say “love yourself and people will love you back”.

Health is not about the weight you lose, but about the life you gain.

This week, we also have one fun contribution from a super lady who aspires to write fiction stories someday, she is not yet a mother but understands a lot about motherhood.

Mommy and Time Machines

– By Neetika Soam

Whenever a woman becomes a mother, she automatically becomes super-talented and comes under the super-goddess species. They know everything and they can do anything. Even the super-fast “BOLT” can’t beat them the way they have the power to smell, watch, hear, and numerous other things they can do in just a frame of time.

Though I am not a mother yet still I carry a handful of experience in my belly and all the credit goes to my super-mom-friends who are the source of my crunchy, utterly-buttery flavors of motherhood.

Usually, mothers get emotional while revisiting their kid’s childhood memories. But during those days, they also wanted to get rid of sleepless nights and edgy days. This is the reason why I think that TIME MACHINES are just perfect for our super-moms so that they can ditch those edgy moments and re-live the cutest & happiest ones.

Statements like, “O God I am tired of these mood swings”. And after 9 months, “O god I love my little monster”.

And like these, “Can someone take this little one away for a while so that I can take my power nap”. And the very next moment, “where are they, where are my kids?”.

Now imagine if we give them a “Time Machine” to relive the best memories. Scenario would be like – “Aji sunte ho mujhe gudiya ki bahut yaad aa rahi hai, mein kuch waqt time machine me hoke aati hun” (I am missing my girl a lot, oh I should go in the time machine for some time and will be back soon)

I hope one day this would be possible and we all can re-visit our sweetest moments spent with our kids.

I totally loved reading these stories and once again I have got inspired by these moms to keep going in life, to stay positive and think about our health too for the sake of our kids and family.

Thanks a lot, Rupal, Rashmi and Neetika for taking out time and sharing your write-ups with me. Means a lot!

Mothers can not give from a depleted source. Every mother needs emotional, mental, physical and spiritual validation, nourishment and support. When a mother is respected and well cared for, she and her whole family will benefit. 

I hope you are liking this series and getting inspired by the beautiful stories shared by the lovely mommies. Do leave a comment below to show your love and support. And do come back next Monday to read the last set of stories for this month!

The post Mother’s health after childbirth – Stories of strong will and determination appeared first on Growing With Nemit.

Hello everyone, as promised I am bringing to you ‘MAA – The Mom Series‘ starting from today where you can read the crude awe-inspiring stories of motherhood and parenting shared by wonderful moms who are not any big writers or famous names but simply next door moms just like you and me. They chose to come out of their comfort zone and share their life’s part with us in the form of articles and that makes them so amazing as this itself requires a lot of courage!

The journey towards Motherhood: ‘Two lines’ to ‘Two smiles’ (Twin Pregnancy) – By Rajavee Gupta

Seeing my two active toddlers playing around makes me feel blessed and happy like all you mums. However, bringing them into this world was not easy and this was all like a distant dream. Though it’s very emotional for me to re-live my whole pregnancy (as some of the instances still give me Goosebumps), I really feel my journey to motherhood could give hope and positivity to many expecting mums out there. Also, I want to highlight we were in Belfast, UK far away from our family during this roller-coaster ride.

Our pregnancy started with the magical moment when we saw those 2 pink lines. On our 1st scan, we both were on cloud nine when we saw those 2 heartbeats (Baby 1 & Baby 2, Yay!). A week later, sickness and acid reflux became my best friends and did not leave me until my labor (Believe me, its worst with the twins). As we were about to enter the 2nd trimester, we met our first nightmare- Subchorionic hemorrhage/hematoma.

Subchorionic hemorrhage- is the pooling of blood (hematoma) between the chorion, a membrane surrounding the embryo (developing baby), and the uterine wall. It occurs in about 3.1% of all pregnancies, it is the most common sonographic abnormality and the most common cause of first trimester bleeding.

Source – Wikipedia

I started bleeding heavily and my husband had to call 999 (the emergency). In the hospital, we both tried to stay positive but deep down we both were dead scared. My husband, he was and is my pillar. There was nothing that doctors could have done to stop the bleeding. However, my tiny bubs were strong and their beating hearts on the scan was our only hope during those darkest hours. I got discharged when the bleeding stopped but spotting continued for a month.

Since then, the hospital became my 2nd home. From a brush with the decision of emergency C-section (2nd nightmare, that’s another story for some other time!) to regular hospital visits, we finally entered into our 3rd trimester. It was a big relief! We really thought we had made through the scary part but at 30th week, I was diagnosed with diabetes (even though I did not touch sugar) and obstetric cholestasis.

Obstetric Cholestasis (OC) is a liver disorder that occurs in around one in 140 pregnancies in the UK, where the normal flow of bile out of the liver is reduced. Chemicals in the bile called bile salts can then build up and ‘leak’ into the bloodstream. This causes affected women to have increased levels of bile salts in their blood.

Source – British Liver Trust

I managed to control diabetes by diet alone (big thanks to my dietician and my ‘masterchef’ hubby) however had to take tablets for cholestasis for rest of the pregnancy.

Now as further weeks passed by, we eventually got relaxed especially my hubby as my parents joined us in Belfast and he could get rid of cooking and other house chores. After entering into 36th week, I was happy to finally get booked for C-section as the weight of my bump, acid reflux and sleeplessness was driving me crazy. My doctors were unhappy with my decision of C-section as they preferred normal (vaginal) delivery for singleton and twin pregnancies.

However, Rishaan (baby 1) decided to come early (36+5). My water broke in the morning (12 Aug. –The D Day) and by evening I decided to go for normal delivery (ha-ha labor had taken over my mind, all thanks to busy OT). The medical team then gave me epidural (NO PAIN now) and Rishaan arrived around midnight, while Samaira (baby 2- breech baby) came after 11 minutes. The delivery went smooth but I must say it was nothing like a movie (I was blessed to have my hubby by my side whole time).

Post-Delivery in the recovery room, when I was exhausted and couldn’t attend to Rishaan’s cries; I witnessed the most beautiful moment of my life, my hubby cuddling Rishaan & singing his first-ever lullaby and that very moment my life felt complete and meaningful (Yes, we did it! Our lovebugs were here!)

From emotional turmoil of Samaira’s short stay in NICU to breastfeeding/bottle-feeding we all came back home after a week (Happy Family!) Many times I think what made us come this far; is undoubtedly my hubby’s love, our positive approach, family (love you all) and friend’s support, dedicated doctors & midwives, AND our LOVEBUGS!

I really want to thank God for our two bundles of joy, Rishaan & Samaira!

I am thankful for my Kids! – By Srishti Singh

I am Srishti Singh, mother of two kids who are not twins but are the same date born. Being a mother is never an easy job but the toughest one when you are a single parent. My daughter was born on 7 Feb 2006, and son on 7 Feb 2009, I worked a lot with them to turn them into a good human being, to educate them and to teach them how to respect.

We moved to the USA to give the best possible life to our kids in 2015. We were a happy family (I think the happiest one) but suddenly on May 11, 2017, my husband passed away in a tragic accident. For me, it was not him who was gone it was me who died. My kids knew the situation and they slept with me holding my hands in the night as they had the idea that mummy is not well.

The day when the accident took place I wanted to end my life, when kids were asleep I tried to sneak out of the room, but suddenly my daughter woke up and asked in her most innocent way, “Mumma aap kaha jaa rahe ho” (where are you going, mom?). I turned towards her and in that moment realized what was I about to do, I came back to my senses and replied back to her, “nowhere, dear”.

My kids saved me from falling into the dark. Today I am doing everything for my little buddies…they are more like friends to me now. It gets tough sometimes to manage everything but yes my kids are very supportive, non-demanding and caring. After their dad passed away, I realized that we gave good values to our kids, they are my strength and not my weakness. I am a proud mother and now a father too.

I realized that being a mother is not about taking care of the kids but to be cared for too. Today when they smile, I feel satisfied from within. We are a family bonded with love and emotions, strong enough to fight all the odds with a smile on our face. Yes, we do break down sometimes as we miss the most important member…but its ok to cry one’s heart out instead of keeping the pain in the heart forever.

Being a Mother is discovering STRENGTHS you did not know you had and dealing with FEARS you never knew existed.

Hope their stories give some strength and hope to mothers who think they are lost. We all face hardships in life but we always find ways to overcome that, we gain experience which if shared with others in need can help them come out of it with just a little effort. When you go through hardships and decide not to surrender, that is strength!

Thanks Rajavee and Srishti for agreeing to do this for me. I really appreciate the time and effort you have put into this!

I will be bringing more such stories from mothers, wait till next Monday. And any of you who wants to share your motherhood experience with others, leave me a message on ‘Growing With Nemit‘ Facebook Page and you could be featured in the December Series.

Also, I will be revealing a ‘Big Surprise‘ in the next Monday’s post. So, stay tuned!

Do leave a comment below and show some love to these moms.

The post Motherhood stories of Hope, Support, Strength and Courage! appeared first on Growing With Nemit.