When motherhood isn't what you expected it was going be

Everyone told me motherhood is instinctive. But when my son arrived, I felt lost. I didn't know how to hold him properly at first, breastfeeding was painful, and I cried almost every day for the first two weeks (Photo: iStock)

Motherhood is often painted in soft pastels and glowing light; a blissful experience filled with baby giggles, tender bonding and an instinct that simply clicks. But behind the curated photos and well-meaning advice lies a more complex, deeply human story, one that blends joy with exhaustion, love with uncertainty and beauty with raw, unfiltered reality.

The transition to motherhood can feel like the greatest bait-and-switch in the human experience. Many women prepare for birth, but few truly prepare for what it means to become.