What to Do When Being a Mom Doesn't Come Naturally

Before having children, women might think motherhood is the most natural role in the world. So what should a woman believe about herself when she feels like she doesn’t have what it takes to be a good mom?

The bar can seem impossibly high. Some moms have smooth pregnancies, and their babies might even take to breastfeeding easily. These mothers look completely content and patient with their children, never frustrated, never aspiring to goals or achievements outside of their family. They bake, they cook, they sew, and they still have spare energy to be an attentive wife, to be involved in the church, and to participate in a women’s Bible study each week.

At least, that’s how it can all seem from the outside if mothering doesn’t come naturally for you.

That was true for Hettie Brittz. She always wanted to be a mom. She grew up in a happy home and wanted a big family herself. She got married young and wanted kids right away.

But very little about mothering came naturally for her. She struggled to breastfeed, bathe her own baby, or to get up in the middle of the night when her baby cried. She loved her children, but so much of what seemed common to mothering didn’t fit her personality as a mom.

Hettie says the reason some mothers feel inferior is because they forget (or may have never learned) that, even in mothering, God designs women differently. Not all women are equally nurturing or equally equipped to serve as a home room mom.

Mom, you need to find your personality as a mother. On our radio program today and tomorrow, we’re going to help you with that. You’ll learn how to maximize your strengths and understand how to manage your weaknesses and turn them into growth points.

Our guest is speaker and author, Hettie Brittz. She’s one of the foremost voices in parenting expertise in South Africa and occasionally speaks for our Focus on the Family South Africa office.

Listen to “Understanding Your Mom Personality” on your local radio station, online, or via our free phone app.