Finding the 'old me' after becoming a mum

I really enjoy reading Lucy Kennedy’s Mums Love Lucy blogs here on MummyPages. Her pieces are so honest and I often find myself smiling while thinking: “You’re so right!”

 

Recently I was reading How to feel like yourself again and it reminded me of how much time it took to “feel like myself again” after our children were born. At the time, I wondered if it took me longer to reach this stage because I was a stay-at-home mum or did something just need to click into place?

 

Before becoming parents, my husband and I spent much of our time socialising and were involved with the local rugby club. He was a coach for a number of teams over the years and I used to help make sandwiches for the First Team for after their home matches.  When we decided to try for a family, this all changed; we found ourselves consumed with trying to conceive, then the pregnancy and finally, babies.

 

Looking back, I think it took me so long not because I was a stay-at-home mum, but because I’d let myself forgot who I was. I lost touch with myself. I always considered myself a very strong, passionate person and loved that I would take on challenges. Over the years since becoming parent, I let myself forget this and lost confidence in myself.

 

After nearly four years, I finally found that confidence I was missing and I could feel the passion I’d tucked away shine through. I felt I’d a fire in my belly again and there was more to me than being a stay-at-home mum. Just from the small changes I’ve made over the last few months like taking more time out for myself, eating healthier and exercising more, I can honestly say I’ve never felt better  in myself.

 

I feel now that I’ve rediscovered who I am, there is a lot more to me than I first thought. I feel I can give more to my family, but more importantly, I can give more to me. I think we really do lose something initially when we become parents and we can gain so much more if we allow ourselves discover it.  

 

I was always one to smile and laugh but when I look back at my ‘old self,’ more often than not I’d find something wrong. As I’d look in a mirror, I would tell myself I needed to lose weight or to be more positive about things.

 

Now when I look in the mirror, I see how I’m making changes and how positive I am. While there are some things I still need to change, such as losing a few pounds, I see that I’m on a wonderful journey and can smile with pride for who I was and for who I am becoming.