New Mamas: It's OK to take a break

Hello, Alexandra here. So today's video is for new mamas, and it is take a break. And it was inspired by my conversation today with Dr. Younger from the Clean Program. He's been helping me optimize my gut, and I highly recommend you check out the Clean Program. Clean Gut, the Clean team and Doc are amazing. They have such transformative stuff for your health and wellness. So check them out. And in our conversation, I had said, you know, sometimes I feel tired and I have a little bit of brain fog. And he said, you're a mother. You're a new mother. Like, that's normal. And then he went on to say that so much of the western culture in America is focused on women getting back out there, like being pregnant and giving birth and then getting back to work. And, you know, it's been three weeks and they're back full force in the workforce, and they're doing it. Our supermodels are, you know, three months back on the Runway and looking all hot and smoking and back to life as usual. And the reality is becoming a mother is crazy and amazing and intense and. And I just think that we could use in our culture, more support of mothers in general and to really honor the process. Like, giving birth to a child is extraordinary. You think about it like you had sex, there's now a baby inside of you growing for nine months. Then you give birth to this child through your vagina. I don't know. That sounds and is extraordinary and miraculous and mind blowing. Almost like that is a big accomplishment. You created a human being. Nine months, Your body did that, and then you gave birth that huge. And we need to honor that rite of passage, and we need to give ourselves time to heal and to replenish and nourish ourselves. And then on top of that, then we have this little, precious little baby who's so adorable and amazing and just makes our hearts skip. And we love them so much and they need so much from us. So taking care of a newborn is like, intense. I know I keep using the word intense, and maybe you didn't have the experience of intense, but being a new mother, it was intense for me. And it took a lot. You know, it took a lot of my energy. There's the nights, and there's the constant 24, 7 care of taking a child. And for me, there was this definitely, I had committed to not doing work and to really just being with my baby. And. But there was a feeling of, like, what the heck am I doing? Like, I wanted to feel more productive. I wanted. I wanted to be back working and doing different stuff. And it was, it was challenging for me to just sink into motherhood and allow myself to fully step into motherhood and realize that this is such an important time for our child. And then also for us, like we, what if we as a culture supported women for the first year of a child's life? Like, helped them, like the community supported them or we hired somebody. But we focused on for the first year was all about replenishing ourselves and staying healthy and happy. We need more healthy and happy mothers. And then taking care of our child and feeling like that was enough, that we were being productive enough and there wasn't this strong desire to get back into work and to get back in, like you have your perfect body back and all of that. Like, I'm not saying that those aren't important and some people have to go back to work. And if you go back to work, like, I'm not saying that this is how you do it, but I'm just inviting you to look at it differently. Just because this is how everyone else has done it and this is how society does it. I think it's important that we question it and we question ourselves of what's important in the first year of our child's life. Like, is our career that important? If we need money, okay, then we can figure that out. But I think it's a really, really important topic for the next generation because how we parent our child and how we mother our child and who we are for our children is so vital to who they are going to be when they grow up. And mothers need to take a break. They do. Like, what would it look like if mothers, their biggest job for the first year was taking care of their child, nourishing their child, being there for their child and then taking care of themselves, taking a nap, eating nutrient dense food, meditating, getting out in nature, Whatever it is, whatever helped or helps you as a new mom do that. Like for me, that became my top priorities. We call them blissiplines. And what my blissiplines were like above everything else, above the dishes, above the laundry, like whatever else it was, taking care of my child and my blissiplines, like plugging in like I needed to nourish and replenish myself. And I'm constantly in that dance even now, you know, I have a 16 month old and there's that mommy dance of really nourishing yourself. But don't burn yourself out, sweet mama. It's not worth it. Just you need to be strong and affirm that what you are doing is important, that what you are doing matters, that you are doing enough. Like, you don't need to be doing all the stuff that you did before you had a child, because life is different. Give yourself the space and the time to really step into motherhood, to really step into who you are as a mother. It's such a huge rite of passage for mothers like you now have a different life. I mean, life will never be the same ever, ever again. And there's. It's so pivotal. The moment that you give birth and you're holding your baby, you are now a mother. And that is extraordinary. Like, give yourself the space to flourish and to thrive as a mother. Don't try to do it depleted and tired and stressed and overwhelmed, trying to be it all for everyone. There'll be plenty of time for you to work and to create and to make money and to do all of that. Just let yourself be. Let yourself be happy, to be healthy and to be with your baby. Yes. Take a break, my sweet mama friend. Ha. We all moms need to take breaks. This is true. So I hope that this was helpful. I hope that it gave you something new to think about and to question how mothers are treated and how you're treating yourself being a new mama and know that you are doing enough. You are a hero. All mothers are heroes. And literally transforming the world by creating amazing little beings that are so full of love and joy and awesomeness. So I send you lots and lots of mommy love and have a glorious day.