Can We Write About Motherhood Without Mum Shaming?

Parenting is not a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach

Joanna Mitchell

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Image Source: Siora Photography, Unsplash

“This essay is yet another example of the parent-shaming drivel that is all over the internet. Written by someone who was never confronted by the prospect of losing their mind, their career, their relationship with their spouse, etc from months or years of sleep deprivation. It’s also incredibly misleading in its ignorance….”

This was a recent comment on an article I wrote about sleep training.

Despite being well-researched, she still believed the article to be ‘drivel’ and ‘misleading’.

It made me wonder —

Could I have written this in any other way that would have made her feel differently?

Can we write any article about motherhood, without making mothers feel shamed?

(I refer to ‘mum shaming’ here and not ‘parent shaming’ because let’s face it, dads do not have the same pressure and expectations put on them as mothers do.)

Shame and the Raw-Ness of Motherhood

Mum shaming is defined as someone criticising a mother for making parenting choices that…

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Joanna Mitchell

Writer | Thinker | Modern-day hippy — I write about wellness, relationships and life hacks for working Mums.