All About #ThatMomLife

The practise of wearing babies has been done throughout the ages and across cultures. It’s a beautiful, natural way to create a deeper bond and give your baby the care they need by being close to them and still being up and about.

I started babywearing pretty early on, when my little one was only a few weeks old and I took her on walks with me. In the first few months, she would almost always fall asleep while I was wearing her. She also didn’t like being left lying down even if I was still in the same room, so sometimes the only way I could get anything done around the house was if I was wearing her. 

It’s been 2 years since COVID-19 was declared a pandemic. We’ve been through multiple lockdowns. Fear and uncertainty has become an unfortunate norm, especially for those of us who are of the vulnerable population, or with loved ones who are. I was pregnant in 2020 and gave birth mid-2021 so I was constantly worrying about getting sick, and then worrying about my newborn getting sick. After 2 years of making sure we took the best precautions, and with the disease getting closer and closer to us, I started feeling like I was playing dodgeball with COVID-19. I also started feeling like it was only a matter of time before we did get it.

And then it happened.

“Please don’t touch my baby!” I said loudly.

The woman threw me a dirty look as if I was the one who had committed a grievous offence, not her. Maybe she thought I was being racist? I made a face. “There’s a pandemic going on, hello?!”

Her face changed. She dropped her hand and walked off without a word.

Let me momsplain something here, “daddy privilege” is a term to describe the double standard that exists in parenting – praising dad for doing expected/normal duties. Is it new? No. But it is getting called out with more and more moms and dads (you go dads!) coming forward with the disgusting truth of how our society upholds such low standards for dads while expecting greatness from moms.

Honestly, my “bra energy” was low at the beginning of my pregnancy. Wearing a bra during the first trimester wasn’t so bad, it was going into the second and third trimester where wearing a bra felt suffocating and just downright uncomfortable.

Was I the only one who felt this way? Nope, turns out a lot of preggo mommas felt the urge to just rip off their bras in the middle of the day and let their “hoohas” hang. How could we not? Our body was expanding, the skin stretches and tight constrictive clothing will only cause farther irritation and none of us, wants to find ourselves scratching our boobs in public.

As a first-time mother, I naturally wanted to be as prepared as I could. I read all kinds of articles, attended webinars, spoke to other mothers, and eventually got to a point where I felt confident in visualising the ‘perfect’ birth. So when I found out at 34 weeks that my baby was breech and I was asked to consider a C-Section if she didn’t turn, I was more than a little thrown.

Picture this Mamas: you’ve set yourself up for a comfortable breastfeeding session. You’ve got your cushion, your favourite TV show cued up, snacks and water within reach and your baby in your arms. You’re feeling okay – I mean, sure you could use a few more Zzz’s and you’d love to have a long hot shower and wash your hair, but generally you’re feeling okay about life and this whole parenting gig.

And your heart sinks. Your stomach drops. You suddenly feel a complete loss of appetite, perhaps even nauseous. Then, almost as suddenly as it came, it’s gone and you’re left wondering what the hell was that?