Perks of motherhood

You only get to understand the perks of motherhood when you are actually planning to become a mother.Before pregnancy, I used to look at pregnant women and think, “Aww, how beautiful.”Now that I am pregnant, I look at another pregnant woman and think, “Madam, I see you. Stay strong.”

Because nobody really prepares you for what happens after you see those two lines.First comes the shock.Even when you have been planning for the baby, even when you have been saying, “I really want a baby,” the moment you see that positive pregnancy test, your brain suddenly becomes a board meeting.

Wait… this is actually happening?You start doing calculations that were never part of your mathematics syllabus.“How many months?”When will the baby come?”“What if I go into labour at the supermarket?”“Who is going to be with me?”

Do babies actually need that many clothes?”And then, for some strange reason, you start looking at your stomach every five minutes expecting it to have transformed into a basketball.Then comes the emotional torture.One minute you are happy.The next minute you are crying because someone ate the food you were saving.Then you are angry.

Then you are hungry.Then you don't want the food anymore.Then you are crying because you don't know what you want to eat.Pregnancy basically turns you into a woman who needs customer service for her own emotions.And the morning sickness?Whoever named it “morning sickness” clearly did not consult pregnant women.

Because what exactly is morning about feeling like you are about to throw up at 11 p.m.?Sometimes you wake up and your stomach has already submitted a resignation letter.You haven't even brushed your teeth and your body is like, “Today we fight.”Then there are the smells.

Suddenly things you used to enjoy become biological weapons.Someone opens a packet of something and you are already looking for an exit.A person cooks onions and suddenly you are reconsidering the entire relationship.And don't even get me started on food cravings.You can spend an entire day thinking about a particular food, only to get it and look at it like, “Who ordered this?”Pregnancy is basically...