"One day I remember opening the front door of the house, just to get some air. I felt so claustrophobic that I felt I couldn't breathe. I didn't want just to be a mum or a wife! What had happened to me?"

"I didn't so much feel guilty about for leaving my son with a childminder when I went back to work. What was harder was that I felt guilty about enjoying being away from him and getting my own space!"

The demands of motherhood mean that very often there is little time for your own needs. How have you coped? How do you make time for yourself? Where do you find your support?

We have initially split this section into three pages:

• we believe that it's important for every mum to get help, support and a bit of freedom. On getting support we share some ideas that have worked for us;



• your body deals with how woman feel about how they look after the arrival of their children;



• in Family life/social life - are they mutually exclusive?, author and mother Kate Konopicky, shares her own experiences of trying to socialise with a baby in tow!

If you have any other areas that you'd like us to include please email your ideas to: contributions@forparentsbyparents.co.uk.

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