Meghan Trainor gave birth to son Riley just 10 months ago. She was so excited to be a mom, she announced her pregnancy the minute she could. So we’ve been involved in much of her journey to motherhood. However, as happens with most fantasies, that journey has not been as smooth as Meghan envisioned. The first wobble happened when she had to deal with gestational diabetes. Riley was breech, which meant she gave birth via cesarean, something she thought she was prepared for but ended up struggling with. However, Riley had breathing complications that led to a five-day NICU stay. But it didn’t end there. Although Meghan thinks being a mother is “worth every stitch,” the first few months have challenged her. She’s choosing to look on the bright side, though. Seeing each lesson as an example of how precious life can be.
On breastfeeding: When you google it or look it up on YouTube? They don’t tell you why it can suck. I’ll tell you why it might suck! Sometimes your nipples aren’t big enough for your baby’s mouth. I didn’t know that was humanly possible!
On stretch-marks: A lot of women are out there posting their stretch marks, and they write, “I love my tiger stripes, they gave me my boy.” I love my baby, but I can’t look at my stretch marks and honestly say, “Wow, I love them,” you know?
On postpartum creativity: It feels like I’m telling my truth. I heard that when you have a baby, you get more creative, and my lyrics are changing. Instead of writing songs to make everyone feel better, I’m writing about how I feel in this moment. But it’s not like every day is sad. It’s more like: Yes, I am a badass, but this ain’t easy, and I have to get up and keep going.
On her parents: I just felt super-loved by my parents. They were really good to us. Still are—they’re at our house every day. I think that’s why I always wanted to be a mom too
On being a working mom: (It was) scary at first but it really helped that the team included so many other moms. I think about moms who don’t get to bring their kids to work, which is pretty much everybody, and it’s crazy to me.
What her therapist told her: “You’re not a bad mom, you’re a working mom, and you’re working to support your family and to love your family.” I think when you have a kid you just realize, ‘Wow, life is beautiful and precious. I want to be the best for my kid.’ I’ve never been more motivated.
To put some context on Meghan’s quote about realizing life is precious when you have a kid, remember that Meghan struggles with anxiety. So I don’t think she’s saying only people with kids understand how precious life is. Kids can be an incredible motivating factor when dealing with mental health. Not the only one, but a big one. Much of what Meghan discussed in her interview hits home with me. I couldn’t wait to be a mother and it was very different than I thought it would be. People don’t understand how you can love your kids a frightening amount but not love being a mom. I’m not saying that’s what Meghan’s saying. But it sounds like what she thought it was going to be like was very different. Because that’s what the SuperMom Complex tries to sell you. So it’s nice to hear people like Meghan admit things are hard sometimes, although I’m sorry to hear she struggled.
There weren’t any pull quotes, but the article talked a lot about Meghan’s husband and poop-partner, Daryl Sabara. She called him “Superdad.” He sounds like a great father. I hesitate to call him a Superdad because he appears to do what moms do every day, but I am happy that Meghan has such a wonderful support network with her husband, parents and brothers around her. Especially now that I know things have been bumpy for her. My family rallied around me when I was having a tough go of it. I don’t know how I would have made it without them.
OMG, Riley is so cute!
Photo credit: Parents Magazine and Instagram
