With Mother’s Day this upcoming Sunday, we want to take a moment to celebrate motherhood and all of the ways it touches our lives. Moms are our first homes, our first loves, and our first teachers. Motherhood is powerful, challenging, awe-inspiring, and the very definition of bittersweet. Motherhood is doing whatever it takes.
Thank you to every mother doing the selfless work of growing, raising, and sustaining our future. We are eternally grateful to you.
We are also thinking of those who have been touched by motherhood in difficult ways: mothers who have experienced pregnancy or infant loss, mothers who have lost their children, those who are yearning to be mothers, those who have chosen not to be mothers, those who have lost mothers, mothers with strained child relationships, and those with strained mother relationships. We hold you in our hearts and celebrate your love and resilience.
We’d be remiss not to recognize how hard this year has been for moms. The pandemic has highlighted our society’s long-standing inequalities and how far we have to go to ensure that all moms have the resources and support they need. With schools and daycares closed and so many parents working from home in the last year, the already unequal load of parenting and household responsibilities has been exacerbated for many moms. The decisions moms have faced regarding school, childcare, and work have been gut-wrenching. Since the pandemic hit last year, nearly three-quarters of a million moms have left the workforce entirely and many may not return.
The constant stress of living through the hardships of the past year while keeping our families safe has affected everyone, but many moms have had no opportunity to heal or recover. Almost seventy percent of moms say that the worry and stress they have felt from the pandemic has damaged their health. These unfortunate effects and impossible decisions have been particularly stark for Black mothers, Hispanic mothers, and single mothers.
As a community, we need to do better. All moms deserve to both raise their children in a safe environment and pursue their own dreams. We envision a better world for all mothers. At Fika, we are working toward this goal every day by providing compassionate, client-centered care throughout pregnancy, postpartum, and beyond.
Author Mary Badame is the Quality Assurance Manager at Fika Midwifery and is a passionate advocate for midwife-led care, increased birth options, and better reproductive healthcare for everyone.
