Visit Um Dean's Blog: www.umdean.blogspot.ca
Dec
Becoming a parent is one of those things that you just don't know until you know. We all grow up hearing how challenging parenthood really is, but we just don't realize it until it actually happens to us.
No amount of reading or pep talks can really prepare you for the challenge that is life with a baby, but that doesn't mean you can't try. At 20 years old, one thing that comforted me the most when I learned I was going to be a mother was the fact that my older sister also had her first child at that age.
One of the most reassuring thoughts for a pregnant woman is knowing that countless others before them have also gone through labour, and have not only survived but thrived.
Knowing that someone else is well off after having gone through what you are about to go through is really quite reassuring. That is what inspired me to start a blog about young motherhood.
Motherhood is an amazing yet sometimes nerve-wracking journey, and not everyone is fortunate enough to have a mentor to take them through it. While I was expecting, I would have loved to have someone take my hand and guide me through all the ins and outs of pregnancy, labour and childcare. There are so many things to learn and it can really get overwhelming.
Before becoming a parent, I was completely oblivious to the fact that there was a whole world of information out there about parenting and child care. Now, I know that there are so many different methods, and even different schools of thought, when it comes to rearing children.
Being a young, Muslim parent in the West is quite a specific challenge. The blog, UmDean Young Muslim Mom is my attempt at helping other young couples get an idea of what it's really like to be a parent in this day and age.
What's the best thing to feed your baby? What's it really like to be a young parent? What are the best toys for a growing infant? How can you manage pain during labour? How can you protect yourself from post-partum depression? Through my blog, I seek to share my own candid experiences with these issues. I'm not an expert on parenting, but by sharing my own day to day journey I hope to give others a glimpse of what it's really like to be a parent and care for your very own “mini-me”.
With topics ranging from “the benefits of baby wearing” to “praying with an infant” and even a detailed account of my own pregnancy, labour and birth, I'm hoping to help and inspire other young women who have decided that they are ready for the great adventure of becoming a young Muslim mom.
Um Dean is an Ottawa-based writer and mother.
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