From the pregnancy announcement, all the way to the birth of a child, there is immense happiness during each stage of motherhood.
And most of the times, happiness is often on public display in maternity photoshoots, birth announcements, and social media.
We see pictures of the new mom smiling with make-up on, while holding a well dressed newborn. But what we do not see is the great pain that comes along with this joy.
Just as the joy of motherhood is part of each phase, so is the pain.
Though everyone shares how enriching motherhood journey is, hardly anyone stresses on the physical and emotional stress that comes along.
But, recently, Sameera started a beautiful campaign #imperfectlyperfect as she shares her postpartum journey to show extent of struggles a new mom goes through, that people hardly notice.
Sharing how painful her C-section stitches are, Sameera shared a glimpse into how she has been handling the pain:
“It’s really damn hard on the body when it’s a c section because the stitches hurt like mad.
Nothing can ready you for the sleepless nights of endless feeding and your body just feels so out of whack it can really get you down. The tummy swelling takes a while to go and this is day 5 post delivery .
Im thrilled to have my daughter in my arms but I can’t help but feel hormonally challenged because of all the changes.
It all bounces back and that’s the silver lining !”
Like many new moms, when Sameera was about to lose herself, she shared how she found her strength in her baby:
“This little girl gave me the strength of wild horses. She wanted me to find myself again.
She knew I was lost and she showed me the way.
I found a voice in celebrating motherhood, wanting change on body perception and the best part was reaching out to people to just feel good about themselves . I’m so happy that people felt so connected and supported me to get here!”
The struggle of breastfeeding is so real, that many new moms could relate to it:
“I think I forgot how stressful breastfeeding can be !!
I mean the pressure Is quite real and the whole top feed balance after a csec is hectic! I finally am exclusively feeding her but the whole process is something that should be natural but it’s made to be very stressful .
I realised with the feedback that a lot of women struggle with it . And, I think it’s cool if a mom wants to move totally to formula or only BF or balance both .
There is no shame and no one can define what’s the perfect way .
We’re doing the best we can ! Ladoos to pumps I’m on job but damn it’s really quite hard !”
At I FOR HER, we celebrate Sameera’s campaign and hope that through her inspiring posts, many moms would find the courage to love themselves and their bodies.
Moms, along with their families, would appreciate the painful struggle that new moms go through to bring a new life into the world!
Suggestion for new mothers and new fathers:
As new parents, it is necessary to remain connected and has open communication with each other to endure and survive the pain. Many times, we tend to fall into the trap of loneliness as we struggle with parenthood. Loneliness only makes the pain more intense. Finding support among the life partner, family members, peers, and friends could be very helpful and therapeutic for new parents!Â