Six ways to fight fear in motherhood

It’s normal to feel some anxiety when it comes to parenting. A lot of the weight falls on moms because they go through serious life changing events like pregnancy and birth. The thought of that can at times be very scary.

Some of that anxiety still sticks around even after your first second or third pregnancy because it’s not necessarily a new mom thing only.

You often worry if you’re good enough as a mom, what will happen if they fall sick, or whether your child is developing normally.

Those are some of the questions moms ask themselves but a lot of the time, you find that everything works out just fine in the end.

The problem comes in when you notice that the fear is starting to affect your life. There could be some underlying problems you need to work on.

Once you work through it, you’ll be able to have that powerful confidence as a mom with these useful tips.

It’s time to sit down with a pen and paper and write exactly how you feel. This is the first step to becoming more self-aware because you can unload that anxiety on paper.

Write down what you’ve noticed about it. Look at the triggers and try understanding where it could be coming from. Could it be as a result of your childhood or does it often happen when you’re tired and haven’t had enough sleep?

This process is important because it allows you to get answers from within so you can start healing.

A big chunk of the answers comes from within but at the same time, you need a fresh perspective to help you overcome.

You can talk to a family member or get in touch with a professional to give you some insight without judging you.

You shouldn’t isolate yourself or work though it alone if it’s too overwhelming.

It’s okay to learn some parenting tips from others but it’s not okay to compare yourself and base your worth on other people’s parenting styles.

There’s no single direct route to parenting because everyone has their own way of doing things.

As long as you have the fundamentals of love and care when it comes to your children, you’re good to go.

Fear often comes as a result of wanting control. The fact that you don’t have complete control over everything might make you latch onto every single thing that you have control over.

This will make your kids more anxious and less confident in future. Learn to relax because whether you like it or not, your children have to learn certain things on their own.

Build more friendships with other moms especially those who have a lot of experience with motherhood. This is the perfect space for you to share ideas and get some advice.

Other people might not be able to fully understand you so it’s more comforting to have people who have gone through similar experiences as you.

There’s a lot of information out there on horrible things that have happened. Listening or watching those things will feed that fear you’re trying to deal with.

The anxiety will get worse and you’ll be unable to move forward comfortably. You have the power to choose what you feed your mind. You should focus on success stories and more positive experiences that others have had.

Motherhood is not easy, there’s no doubt about that. But the whole point is to change your perspective in order to overcome and accept that which you cannot change.