When this image was taken I remember feeling so heavy. So tired. Sore. Uncomfortable with my unfamiliar body, the biggest I’d ever been. Stripped of my prior identity. Fearful of what was to come. Another human inside of me.

In retrospect, I wish I had have appreciated that quiet downtime more, while I had it, listened to my body. The long periods of sleep I could have, the books I could read, the solo lunch dates, baths and wanders around the street.

Now that I’m a mother to a 6 month old, my identity has shifted, yet again. I’m much, much more tired, but I can get through a day on minimal sleep now. My body is stronger from carrying, nurturing and raising a baby for 15 months (internally and externally), my body is familiar again, I get snippets of time to myself, I’m more productive than I’ve ever been in my life, I feel more ME than I ever remember feeling.

It’s exhausting work, being a Mum, but it’s a huge privilege and one that can absolutely transform you if you’re open to it.