Motherhood is the biggest secret of all times. I say this because mothers are all around us. Almost all of us have lived with mothers and grandmothers, spanning across ages. Mothers have been speaking about their journey. They have been sharing their experiences. Some of the confessions are brutally honest and straight from the heart which makes us believe that we know more about motherhood than actual mothers do. Yet, when motherhood dawns upon us we realize that we have no idea of what it is about. Mothers have been trying to unfold this secret for ages and yet it comes as a surprise to every mother out there.
We all are warned about the physical pain of popping out the baby. But, all of us have underestimated that pain till we actually experience it. We are told about the sleepless nights, the tiresome days, how we will love the baby more than anything else and yet we don’t understand until we are a mom.
However hard we research, talk and discuss motherhood, we can never know it all. We can hardly make the motherhood journey easier and simpler, just by being mentally prepared beforehand. But when I came across this (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Ti0mp4v8C4) video by LuvLap, I realised that one thing that definitely helps the mother sail through the new journey is the support system around her – her lifelines. The lifelines that support her, handhold her and stand by her through thick and thin to make her transitional journey a pleasant one. A little support goes a long way in making the life of mother easier, happier and healthier.
For one of my friend, her husband was the only lifeline who took equal responsibility right from the day she conceived. Another cousin of mine handled everything singlehandedly with the support of neighbors, friends, house-helps and baby sitters. And my lifelines have switched amongst themselves from time to time. My husband helped me through the pregnant days and just before delivery, he had some onsite assignment. So, my in-laws pitched in and took good care of baby and me for a couple of months but when my father-in-law got hospitalized, naturally all the focus shifted to him.
For a few days, my physical support system crashed down. And, even though the emotional support was there, I lost my sanity completely. I had pushed my own needs aside and felt isolated, depleted and depressed. My baby was just 2 months old then but he had become used to sleeping with someone around. I would leave him sleeping for just 2 min and he would wake up crying his lungs out. The house had become messy and my life messier. I found no time for my work or for myself. I jumped deadlines for the first time in my life, I skipped taking bath, I missed meals and above all, I didn’t even comb for days together. My mother-in-law barely found time for me and the baby because of ailing father-in-law. My mother and husband were sitting miles away but they knew that I was having a tough time at home. So, they ordered a few baby products to help me out. The baby bed with wheels and the baby carrier by LuvLap indeed came as a survivor. These 2 products became my strongest lifelines for quite some time.
I could carry the baby hands-free when he was awake and whenever he slept, I rolled his cot to the kitchen, garden and even to the bathrooms! I could be around the baby 24×7 while simultaneously managing my own work. A small gift from my loved ones became a strong pillar in my tough times.
The transition into motherhood is overwhelming for most of us. But a strong lifeline makes this transition more manageable. They say that “It takes a village to raise a kid”. But I strongly believe that you just need 1 person who is as good as a village. A single person can change your life in ways 20 others can’t. A strong lifeline helps a mother deal with the stress, anxiety, guilt and above all gives the energy to be a better mother and a better self with each passing day.
#HarMaaKiLifeline
