Who are you, after all? Many moms tend to identify themselves as—well—moms, of course. Twenty-four hours a day, that’s what you’ve been doing for the past couple of decades. A full-time job once meant nine-to-five to you, until you had children. Then you discovered the definition of full-time, or should I say all-the-time? Why wouldn’t you call yourself the post title of a job you hold all the time? As a supporter of women and mothers, I know how important it is to take on this identity as a mother and I applaud any woman who does this. However, it is also important to have your own identity apart from motherhood. 

     Perhaps you have a career aside from being a mom, or maybe you have a hobby or two, or you might think of yourself as a strong woman who likes to help others. It can be a whole activity you do on your own or a few adjectives that you use to describe yourself—you as yourself, not just as a mother.  Not only does this help during your state of mom-hood, as you’ll find it easier to recharge on your own now and then with some personal time apart from the kids (kids don’t want Mom stressed out, trust me—they want you to enjoy yourself from time to time), but also I found that this helped me immensely after my children “left the nest.”

     After mom-hood, I blossomed more than ever as a woman, launching a successful children’s book series, researching and illuminating important health issues such as gluten-free and celiac disease, and participating in humanitarian efforts such as improving children’s literacy. These are things that make me who I am, just as being a mother will always make up who I am. The satisfaction from meeting your own personal goals is a gift every mother deserves to give herself!

Tina Turbin