Little Arwen by Elbi, 28 July 2006

I am a new mum of a 3 month old girl called Arwen. Motherhood was very traumatic in the first few days of her life as she had ceased to breastfeed and was later diagnosed with a bowel disease called Hirshbrungs. I became increasingly more agitated as the midwives didn't....

Rocky Start by Anonymous, 30 July 2006

After reading the story of little Arwen and wiping away stray tears, my memory is cast back 5 years to the birth of my 1st child named L. This is where 'the guilt' began. Thankfully I experienced a text book pregnancy and natural birth but as a thirty something, independent...

Changing Faces by Aunty K, 1 August 2006

Somehow I'm into the second decade of motherhood and it just keeps changing! I'm grateful for good health and good supports to keep up with my children and their interests. It's been a rollercoaster and I have the feeling that the ride is far from over. I have the feeling that I need...

Positive Light by Trish, 8 August 2006

Before motherhood I was a work-a-holic, shopping legend, party animal with a goal to travel to as many countries as often as possible (OS 6 times in two years!). Just before I got pregnant, my father became gravely ill, which totally rocked my world. It was at this point in which I had a...

Myself as a Mother - A Struggle by Yvonne, 16 September 2006

I have two wonderful boys aged 8 and 6 but the first few years of their lives were particularly hard. We move regularly with my husband's work and he is away 15 nights of every month. Unfortunately for me the moves came just after each child was born. So, not only was I...

Not What I Expected by Jasmine, 13 October 2006

I really wanted to have a child and be a mother, but I can't say the transition was easy for me. For starters my little boy had reflux - both silent and projectile. This meant that he was pretty unsettled, had screaming fits and created lots of washing when he vomited. The reflux started...

A Well-Meaning Mother by Kirsty Newbury, 1 February 2007

My transition into motherhood was one of the most terrifying and yet amazing experiences of my life so far. I had no idea that one little person could have so much influence on the way I saw the world, the way I saw my friends and family, and the way I saw myself. I went from being a...

When Your Children Aren't Babies Anymore by Mummy SAL, 1 February 2007

My motherhood experience has undergone yet another evolution this week when my son entered his final year of high school. The realisation that this is the last year that I will send him off looking smart in his school uniform and the last year that my children will share the experience of...

Which Mummy Am I?  by Mel, 7 February 2007

We've all heard the terms Yummy Mummy (size 8-10 stunners that look more like virgins than mothers), Stay At Home Mum (SAHM), Working Mum, Super Mum (a SAHM and Working Mum combo), and the new ones: Smart Child-centred Active Mums (SCAMS) and Smart Middle-class Uninvolved Mums...

My Story and 3 Helpful Thoughts... by Nellie, 11 February 2007

WOW! what a journey... Even though I read every book and every website/forum whilst pregnant with my first child and second child, nothing prepared me for the harsh reality of being a Mum. I have found it so challenging and life changing but of course I wouldn't change anything for the...

Unconditional Love by Melissa, 27 February 2007

During my first pregnancy I started spotting at 14 weeks and was booked in immediately for a scan. The radiologist wouldn’t tell me what was wrong insisting that I had to wait to see my gynaecologist, but I could see for myself that my little baby was as still as a rock. I felt numb...

A New Journey by Casper, 1 March 2007

My first experience of motherhood has been such a rollercoaster ride filled with joy, sadness, anxiety & not to mention worry. I always dreamed my pregnancy & then being a mother would be like those wonderful "Huggies ads", full of love, joy & overwhelming happiness. How naive I was...

Tell the Truth (The Whole Truth) by Mandy, 26 March 2007

I love being a Mum. But when you are pregnant, people say the scariest things to you, which makes you think you will hate being a Mum - "You'll never sleep again" - "You'll be up to your armpits in baby poo" - "being a parent changes you forever". These things were very scary for...

Water Birth by Colleen, 27 April 2007

The pregnancy went well; I worked up until the week before I had Breanna. She came two weeks early. I was sick all day every day and if you put milk near me I'd scream. But you get through it. I had a bad night on the Tuesday vomiting, and on the toilet for hours on end.  I thought it was...

Reflux Babies!  Gotta love 'em! by Michelle, 30 July 2007     

My first pregnancy was a breeze. The birth, however, was another story. Twenty two hour labour followed by a vacuum extraction, as you can imagine, I wasn't a happy camper. The weeks & months that followed seemed to be getting worse & worse. I was finally told that my.... 

• colour chosen: blue, "Feeling a tad blue due to lack of sleep & frustration."

Life with Reflux by Sue, 8 October 2007 

I am a mum of two beautiful girls 5 and 3mths.  Both pregnancies were hard as I had preeclampsia with both. With my first child we were told that they were an eptopic child and prone to allergies. This was fine until we started her on solids and she would react to most foods.....

● colour chosen: orange

My Own Reflux Baby - Help! by Tania_Jane, 21 October 2007  

I've just left hospital after a very long weekend after been rushed there when my 8wk old daughter stopped breathing.  I'm only 20yrs old; over the moon to be a young mum but I never....

New Mum can be Great Mum by Roxsana, 21 January 2008 

My children are not babies any more but I feel great pleasure while remembering them when young. I can only say that being a mum is one of the best relationships that a mother can experience throughout her entire life....

• colour chosen: blue

Reflux Baby by Tash, 27 March 2008  

Hi Tania, I really feel for you and understand what you are going through. I have a 7 month old son who has an extreme case of reflux. He was born 5 weeks early and only weighed 3 pound. Not only was it a long struggle with the birth.....

Mother of all Problems 

Administrators note: I have included, here, three posts from another website that were in response to an online article.  You can view the article and the web link to it in the Articles section on this website, under the heading 'Mother of all Problems'.  The article was written late in 2007 and is based on research by Victoria Williamson from Adelaide.

Incarcerated by NLee, 6 May 2008  

My apologies first to those who try hard to conceive but are unsuccessful; I am not being ungrateful, just unsure how to progress forward. BC I had a job I loved, a home in Fiji and promotion arms length away. But my....

• colour chosen: grey

Jewel and Sienna's Story by Jewel, 29 May 2008 

Sienna was born in winter 2002, after a difficult birth.  I held her in my arms and was amazed that she made it through the difficult labour all in one piece.  However the Obstetric Registrar that was on duty at the time,...

Little McKenzie by Sheryl, 30 May 2008 

Well where do I start?  My LITTLE McKenzie...at first she wasn't so little, she was born at 38 weeks weighing 10 pound 2.  She was so fat she couldn't open her eyes for the first three days.  She was a leach; boy could she suck!...

• colour chosen: blue

My Jelly Bean Story by Sue, 27 June 2008

On May 17 2008 My little Adrain was born at 30 weeks. She was doing very well for the first 2 weeks. One Saturday morning I came in to see her in the NICU and they told me that...

• colour chosen: purple

Administrator's note re submission guidelines: At this point I would just like to remind people about the guidelines for Your Story.  This section is for inner reflections about what motherhood means to you.  While all submissions are welcome I will need to place ones that just describe situations and people or are mainly requesting interaction in the Chit Chat section of the archived Discussion Board so that the genre for Your Story stays consistent.  These submissions will still be featured in the eNewsletter so people can still find them.  Cheers, Felicity.

Different Stages by Janice, 23 August 2008 

.....I understand how little there seems to be of me in the role of a mother. I realize, that without realizing it I have had to learn so much to be the kind of mother that I wanted to be for my children that I had to let the threads that hold me, go so loosely, that I could hardly feel myself....