Bored Panda works better on our iPhone app
Continue in app Continue in browser

BoredPanda Add post form topAdd Post Search
Tooltip close

The Bored Panda iOS app is live! Fight boredom with iPhones and iPads here.

Woman Writes An Open Letter, Explains How ‘4 Words’ Changed Her Attitude Towards Motherhood
User submission
1.3K
73.5K

Woman Writes An Open Letter, Explains How ‘4 Words’ Changed Her Attitude Towards Motherhood

ADVERTISEMENT

Mom-of-three and blogger Ashley Gibson strives to be the best parent. And that’s definitely something to be proud of. However, from time to time she — like all moms — ends up in situations where she has to do things she’s not too psyched about. And if it weren’t for her husband, Ashley even might’ve gotten used to them.

“There’s no trophy, Ashley,” her husband said as she was giving birth. The words really resonated with her, reminding her that it’s OK for mothers to think of themselves as well. She put all of her realizations into a wonderfully-written post on Facebook, and it quickly went viral. Continue scrolling and read for yourself.

More info: Facebook

Image credits: Ashley J. Gibson

Image credits: Ashley J. Gibson

ADVERTISEMENT

“I think we as women/moms are responsible for creating these superficial trophies,” Ashley told Bored Panda. “Partly out of prideful thinking that our way of doing things is the only ‘right’ way of doing things and being too self-absorbed to consider that different moms all have different circumstances that most people know nothing about but eagerly pass judgment on.”

“Also, there’s the pride of not admitting we all struggle. When we only share the easy things on social media it perpetuates the myth that there is such a thing as being a perfect mom. Being humble enough to share the tough stuff makes us all feel more human because it opens the door to say, ‘oh my gosh me too.'”

ADVERTISEMENT

Image credits: Ashley J. Gibson

The superficial trophy she has dealt the most with during her latest pregnancy was the feeling that she needed to get her pre-baby back right away. “I work in the fitness space which makes that feel even more intense but in general I see lots of moms struggle with feeling like they are doing something wrong if they don’t magically shed the baby weight. The truth is, that timeline looks different for every mom and it’s not a race to look like you didn’t have a baby when if fact you did just have a baby.”

ADVERTISEMENT

Luckily, everything turned out for the best and Ashley used her experiences for growth. She and her husband are happily raising 3 boys. She really respects the effort he puts into raising their kids. “My husband is an amazing father and I’m so proud of him,” she told said. “He didn’t have a good role model of what a dad should be and instead of using that as an excuse he’s used it as a reason to be a present role model in our boys’ lives.”

Image credits: Ashley J. Gibson

Here’s what people said about Ashley’s post

ADVERTISEMENT

74Kviews

Share on Facebook
You May Like
Popular on Bored Panda
Leave a comment
Add photo comments
POST
johnlouis avatar
John Louis
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Elanor Roosevelt once said, "Small mind s focus on people, mediocre mind focus on events and brilliant minds focus on ideas." Why do people snipe at each other over these trivialities?

georgedigamma avatar
George Digamma
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Being a parent is not easy, but someone has to do the hard job.

michael_kirchhoff avatar
Michael Kirchhoff
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

But there is a trophy for breastfeeding vs. bottle feeding... Namly the boost to the immune system of the child. So if there is no important reason to not breastfeed, do it. The child doesn't asked to be born into this world, you choose to, so it is your responsibility to care for it as good as you possibly can.

crabcrab avatar
Hans
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

There is no trophy for being a good parent? They may not be, but a happy child is truly rewarding.

kathrynfellis avatar
Katchen
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

“There is no trophy for being a good parent?” She never said that.

Load More Replies...
nmido avatar
BrendaGames
Community Member
4 years ago (edited)

This comment is hidden. Click here to view.

✅✅ Hi .. ❤ do you mind being mastur︆︆bated together?❤ write me here ✅✅==>> b︆︆︆it.︆︆︆do/fnibW

johnlouis avatar
John Louis
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Elanor Roosevelt once said, "Small mind s focus on people, mediocre mind focus on events and brilliant minds focus on ideas." Why do people snipe at each other over these trivialities?

georgedigamma avatar
George Digamma
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Being a parent is not easy, but someone has to do the hard job.

michael_kirchhoff avatar
Michael Kirchhoff
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

But there is a trophy for breastfeeding vs. bottle feeding... Namly the boost to the immune system of the child. So if there is no important reason to not breastfeed, do it. The child doesn't asked to be born into this world, you choose to, so it is your responsibility to care for it as good as you possibly can.

crabcrab avatar
Hans
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

There is no trophy for being a good parent? They may not be, but a happy child is truly rewarding.

kathrynfellis avatar
Katchen
Community Member
4 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

“There is no trophy for being a good parent?” She never said that.

Load More Replies...
nmido avatar
BrendaGames
Community Member
4 years ago (edited)

This comment is hidden. Click here to view.

✅✅ Hi .. ❤ do you mind being mastur︆︆bated together?❤ write me here ✅✅==>> b︆︆︆it.︆︆︆do/fnibW

Popular on Bored Panda
Trending on Bored Panda
Also on Bored Panda