
I Wish I Could Mother Them Now as the Person I Am": This One's For the Moms in Pure Survival Mode
From Beyond the Bombshell: Confidence, Style, and Empowerment for Women by Michelle Stokes
May 11, 2026 · 31 min · Episode 133
About this episode
Michelle discusses the challenges of motherhood and the feelings of guilt and exhaustion that many moms experience.
Michelle records the day after Mother's Day to honor all the moms showing up exhausted, the women who wanted to spend the day alone, and anyone who's ever felt guilty for not soaking it all in. She opens up about the years she's completely blacked out—especially Scarlet's first few years—admitting there were Mother's Days when she dreaded hearing the word "mom" one more time. From the come-to-Jesus moment in Alberta when she realized she needed to move home for help, to crying with Josh about how she used to feel versus how she feels now, to a reel that stopped her cold: "I wish I could experience newborns as the mom I am now." This is about the survival mode no one warns you about, the guilt of being ambitious when you're supposed to just be grateful, and the mental load of being CEO of everyone's lives. If you're drowning right now or you know someone who is, this one's the permission slip to admit it's hard—and you're not doing it wrong. Timestamps: 00:00 Honoring All the Mothers 02:15 Entering a New Mom Era (But Still Figuring It Out) 03:14 The Years I Completely Blacked Out 05:18 The Alberta Breaking Point 07:14 The Mother's Days I Dreaded 09:30 "I'm Going to Regret This…
People in this episode
Host: Michelle Stokes
Topics covered
- motherhood
- survival mode
- mental load
- ambition
- guilt
- self-care
Keywords
- motherhood
- survival mode
- guilt
- ambition
- mental load
- self-care
- Mother's Day
Mentioned in this episode
Places: Alberta
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