Independence From Mom Guilt

We’re celebrating Independence Day here in the US~ a time of year when I always reflect on how flipping glad I am for all the freedoms I have.

As a mom in America, I pretty much have it made in so many ways. My life isn’t perfect, and I have to work hard to improve it all the time, but just the fact that I was born where and when I was means that I was dealt a lot better of a hand than so many other women in the world.

American mothers are free to be single or married, to wear what we want, to have any religious affiliation we want, or none at all, to homeschool or send our kids to school, to find a way to go to go to college, pack up and move, learn new skills, complain about politics, read, listen to and watch whatever we want.

I’m not at all discounting poverty or social inequalities, and I’m not saying it’s equally easy to make choices a reality, but I am saying that the very fact that we are free to make choices and to try to chase dreams is really freaking awesome.

We may be free of oppressive government and having to worry about whether our daughters are really working in a rug factory or are being trafficked, but one thing I notice that many of my peers are not free from is Mom Guilt. 

I wonder if Mom Guilt is a first world problem, or if just our extreme take on it is? 

We give our kids food, shelter and love~ what the heck do we feel so bad about?

In the last week, I’ve seen at least 5 articles on the topic, and I wasn’t even looking for them. 

Here are a few of my favorites:

Beth Berry provides a handy list of 10 Great Ways to Be an UnHappy Mom

Glennon at the Momastery talks about self inflicted mom competition with "Quit Pointing Your Avocado at Me."

And, last but not least, VK Harber at Mothering.com calls it what it is with “Mommy Guilt is a Misnomer.”

I’m thinking that as a nation of mothers, we might just need to lighten up a bit and declare our independence from feeling guilty over every little detail that isn’t perfect in our children’s lives. 

So they missed out on some preK enrichment class or didn’t get music lessons or soccer~ is that really such a big deal? 

Worrying about every little thing we messed up on kind of gets in the way of enjoying all the great stuff we are doing right, and most of us have a whole lotta cool stuff going on.

So, what do you think about Mom Guilt? Are you free?