As part of the Mother Talk Blog Tour for Arianna Huffington’s book On Becoming Fearless, I wrote up my thoughts on the book and posted them on our blog. Huffington’s new book focuses on big picture fears, the ones that hold us back in life: fears of success, of heartache, of dying, of failing.
Once I moved past my rookie year of motherhood, I was ready to work on some of those issues. That first year, however, my world was so small and my fears were so sharply surprising and unfamiliar, I was not able to look beyond my immediate surroundings. I could only focus on my baby and surviving my new role as a working mom. I feel ok about that now. I can’t apologize for it, and I fully expect to repeat that experience when my second child arrives this summer.
All over again, I might be afraid to leave the house, to nurse in public, to commit to a social engagement, or to wear anything that makes me look worse than I already feel.
So, in honor of Fearless Friday, I invite our newbie mom readers to do something that scares them. Whether it’s drive into the city with your baby, take a shower while she’s lying in her crib, breastfeed at a department store, mix up a bottle during an errand, or change a diaper in the trunk of your car.
Identify what exactly you fear. Is it that the baby will cry and you will feel guilty? You will feel embarrassed? The baby will be hurt? You will have forgotten something that you need? People will think you are a bad mother? You will feel overwhelmed and disorganized?
Once you’ve figured out what you fear, you can try to approach it with fearlessness.
Go on and do it. It’s Fearless Friday. I would love it if you let me know what you discover, when you think hard about what you’ve been avoiding. Everyone takes comfort in knowing that they’re not alone in their anxieties.
And please, remind me of this in July when I am afraid to go anywhere.
