To The Working Mother Who Gave Birth During The Pandemic. It Is Ok If You Are Not Over it.

This article is about mothers who gave birth during the pandemic.

This March marks 3 years since the UK was placed into a lockdown. The pandemic changed everything, and since then, things have not been the same. Everyone was affected in their own way, and multiple groups of people are still trying to heal from the time when the world stopped.

For those who were pregnant, they faced unprecedented times.

Antenatal appointments were cancelled, appointments were attended alone, and some women gave birth alone.

The fear and panic amongst pregnant women was like nothing seen before. So, of course, three years on, the memories are still clear. Sadly, many women had to live through unspeakable things all whilst being unsupported. From miscarriages, to still births, to traumatic births, to breastfeeding struggles to mental health difficulties in the post-partum period.

For the women who were blessed enough to have a health baby, they were faced with the difficulties of having to look after a newborn baby during lockdown. Simple things, such as going to the shops to purchase nappies became extremely challenging, as often, during that time, one had to queue for hours just to walk into a shop. During lockdown, there were no visitors, no casual strolls through the town centre, and even walking to the park felt unsafe with a newborn. Maternity leaves all over the country were left completely ruined.

And, even though there were some pockets of time when the restrictions were eased, they were still masked with fear and anxiety. Introducing your baby to people, when they had only ever been around you (and a partner) felt very threatening. Multiple thoughts would run through your head, such as; ‘Will this person pass on an infection to my child?’ ‘Did they wash their hands?’ ‘I hope they don’t kiss the baby’ or ‘I don’t want them to hold my child’. Although new mothers are often protective of their babies, pandemic mothers had no choice but to take this protectiveness to a new level.

In addition to being in lockdown with a newborn, you were also constantly bombarded with news and updates about the pandemic. You could not escape the news even if you wanted to.

With time, your pandemic baby grew stronger, then with time your fears started to ease a little bit, however, they did not leave.

And, in time, as the shops started to open up again, you started to worry a little less, but the worries did not leave.

As the months passed, your baby started to walk, talk and become more independent. With the growth of your baby, the trauma of the pandemic started to ease a little. And now, 3 years on, you are starting to feel a little bit better overall.

However, that period of time has not left you, it shaped you into a new person. A stronger person. And although it was a hard time, a painful time, it was also the one which brought you the miracle that is your child; your special pandemic baby.

So, to all those who gave birth during the pandemic, we see you, we know that it made you stronger, BUT, it is ok if you are not over it.

We hope that you enjoyed this article ‘To The Working Mother Who Gave Birth During The Pandemic. It Is Ok If You Are Not Over it.’

We would love to hear your thoughts. Were you a pandemic mum? How did manage during this time?

Thank you for reading our article.

Editorial Team, Mamo & Mono