How I came to be Leopard Mum?
Photograph by Teck Lim
I didn’t always look this way, in fact today, I am 2 months shy of my 2nd anniversary of first contracting the dreaded Hand-Foot-Mouth Diseases (HFMD) from my son in January of 2017. Being heavily pregnant at the time, my immune system was naturally compromised, and I unfortunately developed complications from the disease. My immune system attacked every inch of my skin as it tried to rid my system of HFMD. As a result, I was left with blisters all over my body. It was the hardest 2 months of my life. So every rosette that you see on my skin is a scar deeply embedded from the depths of my dermis. It’s evidence of the blisters that once riddled my heavily pregnant body in 2017.
But as they always say, everything happens for a reason. The traumatic experience has given me a new perspective on seeing and living my life. Even before contracting HFMD, I suffered from post-natal depression after giving birth to my first child. I’m not proud to say that it had consumed me. But all that is history now, and today I find new ways of analyzing every little bit to be thankful for in life and a new passion for helping those around me find a path unique to them. I believe that my vocation in creative design has helped me do this for myself and for others. This has in turn fueled my new desire to start this new blogging adventure to share more about what I’ve learnt to more people.
Like I mentioned before, I’m not perfect, but I do believe that being honest with yourself is helpful for all new mothers out there to understand that it’s perfectly fine not to be perfect. And hopefully, with my unfiltered depiction of life, I can show you that it’s ok to be gentle with yourselves, and in doing so, to become a better, more authentic version of the ideal mother you can be.
Most of all, I believe that a woman is strong and beautiful in every way you can imagine. A long time ago, my own mother told me that the woman forms the pillar of the household. For without her strength as both wife and mother, the entire home will collapse. It is your choice to find your own confidence and remain true to yourself, braving every challenge life throws at you. I truly believe in the old adage that says when you truly be yourself, you allow others around you to be themselves.
On a more selfish note, the reason for starting this blog is to help me keep myself true to my own path. I want to be an example for my two children to follow when they inevitably come to their own crossroads. Through the values I learn from my own struggles, I hope to instill these values as a route-map for them, so they never get lost for too long in their lives.
So, the Leopard Mum blog is an opportunity for me to embrace myself in my new skin, my identity and to proudly own it! It’s about learning to love your own skin, pun intended of course. Everything from parenting to body confidence to mindfulness; coz when you get some structure in life and gain control. And this has a knock on effect, thus helping me gaining control of your body, mind and emotions. This allows me to illustrate not just how I see myself physically, but also spiritually and mentally, taking on the persona while honing the new definition that is Leopard Mum!