How can you know if you’re ready to be a Mom until you’ve tried it first-hand? As a woman in my young twenties, I find myself wondering if I will ever feel ready and if I do think I’m ready how can I know?
While there are few ways to “test out’ being a parent until it’s your responsibility alone, it’s doesn’t give you the full picture of parenthood until you are in charge every day all day. When you’re able to hand the child back over to their primary caretaker the never-ending responsibility of being a mother is not present.
Motherhood is a huge life transition that requires much thought; however, here are a few clues that can help you to determine if you might be ready to consider leaping.
You Love Watching TV As Much as You Love Going Out
Now, this is not to say that you won’t ever get to go out again, but nowhere close to the amount that you used to. Towards the beginning, most of your free time will be spent bathing, eating, and sleeping. On special occasions, you will even be able to watch TV shows where other people get to go out.
You Can’t Stop Staring at Other People’s Babies
If you find yourself in public and you can’t take your eyes off the baby, you might be ready for your own.
You Have Witnessed a Tantrum and It Didn’t Make You Want to Run
Now, this goes hand in hand with my last point. It’s easy to think you’re ready to parent when the child is well behaved. But if you’ve witnessed a child having a tantrum and it didn’t make you change your mind about being a Mom this is a good sign.
You’ve Seen Other People Parent and Think That You Could Do It Better
If you’ve seen other people’s parenting styles and envisioned what you would do the same and what you would do differently, you are already thinking like a Mom.
You Don’t Mind Sharing
As a Mom, nothing is no longer yours and yours alone. This goes for food, money, time and everything in between. Most Mom’s would tell you, for the next few years, you will never go to the bathroom alone again.
Final Thoughts
In Addition to all the things above motherhood also requires a person who is both mentally and financially stable. Some final factors to consider are below:
How will I afford to care for my child?
Have I worked through my emotional issues so that I do not pass them on to my child?
Am I ready to work through any of my emotional issues so that I do not pass them on to my children?
Do I have a support system in place?
Am I willing to make sacrifices for someone other than myself?
Am I willing and able to single parent if the child’s father is absent?
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