A mum has been praised for 'keeping it real' after she shared a frank account of how she’s feeling following the birth of her first child.
Zoe Marshall - a radio presenter from Sydney - took to Instagram to upload a snap of herself with tear-stained eyes along with some very powerful words.
'This is me. Overwhelmed, after crying in my room for an hour. Benj had been playing away and I just couldn't handle any of it. I felt bad for wanting some space to breathe and weep,' she wrote in her heartfelt post.
'I felt scared that I didn't know what Fox needed. I was so incredibly exhausted. Hungry. Depleted. Sad. Confused. Week 2 and 3 was so hard for me.. I hadn't left the house in days. I couldn't catch up with life. Couldn't bare to see visitors.'
After telling her followers she felt 'alone' and 'isolated', the mum-of-one, 33, explained what prompted her to post such candid details about her journey so far.
'There's going to be so many joyful times with baby Fox shared on social media', she continued.
'I need to show you the realness too, the days of not getting time to eat, of not being able to sleep when you get to have a sleep, of the sore neck, wrists, back, nipples, of butting heads with your partner and scrolling Google for answers… Not to mention the healing your body is going through, pants that don’t fit, strength you no longer have in your body. It's a hard, hard time.'
Zoe - who welcomed her son with New Zealand rugby league star Benji Marshall just a few weeks ago - concluded by asking others to share their experiences of parenthood.
'As glorious as having a little miracle is, we need to acknowledge the transition into parenthood and how challenging that can be.. I'm having much better days now with a few of these thrown in for good measure (like the last two days - brutal).
'This isn't post natal depression it's transition and I wish I was forewarned. I’d love to know I’m not alone… What was the biggest challenge for you?'
Zoe's followers were quick to reply, with a number opening up about their own personal struggles.
'I asked the exact same question when I first had my little girl why did no one warn me? Not sure it would of made a difference though just know u are not alone so many times I was overwhelmed, exhausted and cried for no reason worrying something was wrong with me or my baby,' said one.
'Just know that it will get better you will adjust and baby will give you some sleep. Deep breaths mumma, you got this!'
'I am a single mum with a 3 week old. It gets tough.. but I just have to take one look at my lil angel and I know everything is going to be just fine,' another added encouragingly.
A third praised Zoe for her honesty, saying: 'Thanks for keeping it real. It's hard but the rewards are amazing. Be kind to yourself and remember your mum is guiding you.'
Five categories of grandparent have been identified by psychologists, and we all want number #2
Millennial dads are doing 4 things better than previous generations, but is it enough to lighten the mother's mental load?
