You're not doing it wrong, it's just that hard
Motherly Motherly
  • Pregnancy
    • Getting Pregnant
      • Infertility
      • Surrogacy
      • Adoption
      • Miscarriage & Loss
      • Pre-Pregnancy Shopping Guides
    • Registry Guide
      • Feeding
      • Toys & Books
      • Diapering Essentials
      • Bedtime & Bathtime
      • Baby Clothing
      • Baby Gear
      • For Mama
      • Health & Safety
    • Pregnancy
      • First Trimester
      • Second Trimester
      • Third Trimester
      • Pregnancy Products
    • Baby Names
      • Baby Names By Month
      • Popular Baby Names
      • Unique Baby Names
    • Birth
      • C-Section
      • Labor & Delivery
      • Birth Stories
    • Postpartum
      • Fourth Trimester
      • Parental Leave
      • Postpartum Products
  • Parenting
    • Baby
      • Sleep Guides & Schedules
      • Feeding Guides & Schedules
      • Milestone Guides
      • Health
      • Learn & Play
      • Products
    • Toddler
      • Memorable Moments
      • Milestones
      • Sleep
      • Nutrition
      • Health
      • Learn & Play
      • Products
    • Child
      • Health
      • Milestones
      • Sleep
      • Nutrition
      • Learn & Play
      • Products
    • Teen
      • Tween
      • Issues
      • Nutrition
      • Health
      • Activities
  • Life
    • Beauty & Style
      • Style
      • Beauty
      • Beauty & Style Shopping Guides
    • Food
      • Meal Planning & Shopping
      • Nutrition
      • Entertaining
    • Motherly Stories
      • Personal Essays
    • Home
      • Home Decor
      • Home Shopping Guides
    • Career & Money
      • Work & Motherhood
      • Family Finances & Budgeting
      • Taxes
    • State of Motherhood
    • News
      • Viral & Trending
      • Celebrity News
    • Health & Wellness
      • Covid
      • Women’s Health
      • Children’s Health
      • It’s Science
      • Mental Health
      • Self Care
      • Fitness
      • Health & Wellness Shopping Guide
    • Travel
    • Entertainment
      • What To Read
      • What To Watch
    • Holidays
      • Halloween
      • Thanksgiving
      • Rosh Hashanah
      • Christmas
      • Kwanzaa
      • Hanukkah
    • Relationships
      • Single Parenting
      • Blended Families
      • Community & Friendship
      • Marriage & Partnerships
      • Grandparents & Extended Families
  • Shop
    • Mother’s Day Gifts
    • Pregnancy
      • Stretch Mark Cream
      • Pregnancy Pillows
      • Maternity Pajamas
      • Maternity Workout Clothes
      • Compression Socks
      • All Pregnancy Products
    • Toddler Products
      • Pikler Triangles
      • Toddler Sleep Sacks
      • Toddler Scooters
      • Water Tables
      • Sippy Cups
      • All Toddler Products
    • Postpartum
      • Breastmilk Coolers
      • Postpartum Pajamas
      • Postpartum Underwear
      • Postpartum Shapewear
      • All Postpartum Products
    • Child Products
      • Kid Pajamas
      • Play Couches
      • Kids’ Backpacks
      • Kids’ Bikes
      • Kids’ Travel Gear
      • All Child Products
    • Baby Products
      • Baby Wraps
      • Baby Swaddles
      • Eco-Friendly Diapers
      • Baby Bathtubs
      • Splat Mats
      • All Baby Products
    • Beauty & Style Products
      • Pregnancy-safe Skincare
      • Diaper Bags
      • Maternity Jeans
      • Matching Family Swimwear
      • Mama Necklaces
      • All Beauty and Style Products
  • Classes
    • Classes
      • All Classes
      • Free Classes By Motherly
      • Parenting & Family Topics
      • Postpartum
      • Sleep
      • Toddler Topics
      • TTC & Pregnancy
      • Wellness & Fitness
  • Podcasts
  • Join the list!
  • Please wait..
×
Clear

Home / Life

You’re not doing it wrong, it’s just that hard

By Motherly Updated Nov. 30, 2022

  • Rectangle

Working on relationships when you are a mother is just hard. Making parenting decisions when you are a mother is just hard. Not because you are doing it wrong, simply because it is.

Categories:
Life, Parenting, Relationships

Related articles

child playing with train- imaginary play
Viral & Trending
Caitlin Murray explains why she’s never engaged in ‘imaginary play’ with her three kids, sparking debate
Updated Jun. 27, 2024
women's healthcare
Podcast
How Kate Ryder is reinventing women’s healthcare—starting with moms
Updated Apr. 17, 2025
mom holding a newborn baby, a toddler on her shoulders and a child sitting next to her
Parenting
Dear mama: You’re not doing it wrong, it’s just that hard
Updated Mar. 01, 2024
Moms discussing postpartum
Postpartum
“Nobody warned me about this”: The postpartum truths moms wish they knew sooner
Updated Jun. 17, 2025
Reddit - A woman with two kids
News
“I did this with my first baby—but never again”: 10 real lessons from second-time parents
Updated May. 28, 2025

More articles like this

Viral TikTok mom crying over daughter's graduation
News
Why this mom’s college graduation breakdown went viral

"There I was, bawling, and he was laughing, and it actually was pretty funny."

Updated May. 16, 2025
News, Viral & Trending
Olivia Munn postpartum
News
‘It was more difficult than going through cancer’: Olivia Munn opens up about the postpartum anxiety no one prepared her for

If you’ve ever felt like postpartum hit you like a tornado, Olivia Munn wants you to know you’re not alone.

Updated Apr. 15, 2025
News, Celebrity News, Postpartum
Baby looks like dad
Viral & Trending
When your baby is a mini-me of dad, but you did all the heavy lifting

We put in the work, but Dad gets the genetic credit.

Updated Apr. 09, 2025
Viral & Trending, Parenting
Michele Obama
Postpartum
Michelle Obama’s hilarious one-word response when Barack suggested a third baby

Though the “third baby” moment was brief, it came during a larger, deeply honest conversation about early motherhood.

Updated Mar. 25, 2025
Postpartum, Celebrity News, News, Podcast, Pregnancy
Viral Instagram reel: A picture of a mom with her daughter
News
Mom picks up ‘sick’ 5-year-old daughter from school—what happened next left her speechless

The clip shows the little performer using a TV remote as a microphone to belt out "APT" at top volume—stomach ache mysteriously nowhere to be found.

Updated Jan. 27, 2025
News, Viral & Trending
A photo of Amanda Seyfried
News
Amanda Seyfried says taking time for herself feels ‘selfish’ as a mom of two—here’s why it’s actually essential

Amanda Seyfried recently opened up about the delicate balance of motherhood and self-care, sharing how making time for herself can sometimes feel “selfish.”

Updated Dec. 12, 2024
News, Celebrity News
new parents holding baby marital advice
Marriage & Partnerships
This brilliant piece of parenting advice helped me avoid marital spats in early motherhood

Now, it's the one thing I always share with new parents.

Updated Apr. 15, 2024
Marriage & Partnerships
books for new moms
Women's Health
These are the 6 books I’d gift to new moms

To empower them to tackle the anxiety and stress that comes with motherhood.

Updated Dec. 16, 2024
Women's Health, What To Read

Featured Posts

working mom
Career & Money
Someone at work questioned my ambition because I’m a mom. The irony? He was a dad

When pitching an investor, I got a question that stopped me in my tracks. Here’s how I wish I had responded—and what it taught me about proving the doubters wrong.

Updated Aug. 20, 2025
Career & Money, Motherly Stories, Work & Motherhood
bravado designs
Beauty & Style Shopping Guides
A bittersweet goodbye: Beloved nursing bra brand Bravado Designs is closing after 33 years

Bravado wasn't just another intimates brand. It was the brand.

Updated Aug. 13, 2025
Beauty & Style Shopping Guides
summer glow products
Beauty & Style Shopping Guides
I found 6 products that will let me keep my summer glow long after Labor Day

Sun-kissed looks, hold the sun damage.

Updated Aug. 12, 2025
Beauty & Style Shopping Guides
Dad and son in the tampon aisle
Parenting
This father-son duo in the pad aisle is breaking a generations-old taboo

For decades, conversations about menstruation have been shaped more by silence than by openness.

Updated Aug. 11, 2025
Parenting, Life
bluey converse
Beauty & Style Shopping Guides
Converse just launched a Bluey collab and the adult sizes are already selling out

You might say we're "head over Heelers" about these.

Updated Aug. 07, 2025
Beauty & Style Shopping Guides

Most Popular Posts in Life

mother with upset child
Motherly Stories
If your kids act differently with you than dad, you’re not imagining it

In your presence, your child feels an emotional security that allows them to be vulnerable, unguarded and exposed.

Updated Sep. 07, 2022
Motherly Stories, Life
family at table asking "how was your day"
Relationships
24 questions to ask your partner instead of, ‘How was your day?’

"If you could do any part of today over again, what would it be?"

Updated Jul. 05, 2024
Relationships, Life
Our Partners
This Mother’s Day, give her the gift of less stress

Simple ways to take something off her plate—today and every day.

Updated Apr. 21, 2025
Our Partners, Beauty & Style, Life, Mother's Day, Shop
Life
Yelling at your child happens—what you do *after* is what counts, mama

If we don't do anything about the guilt it can eat away at us.

Updated Nov. 30, 2022
Life
Life
Yes, I’m a mom *and* I put my sex life first

Recognizing our needs is the first step to reclaiming what we want.

Updated Feb. 24, 2025
Life, Relationships
Life
You’re growing so fast my baby, I wish I could slow down time

You just keep getting bigger, doing more, needing me less.

Updated Sep. 14, 2022
Life
Life
Dear firstborn—thanks for showing me the way

You are the incredible gift who gave me my cherished title of ‘mother.’

Updated Oct. 14, 2021
Life
one woman giving a speech for another friend
Community & Friendship
To my pregnant best friend—you’re going to be an amazing mama

I know you’re worried. I know you’re scared. But you know what I know? You’ve got this.

Updated Oct. 05, 2022
Community & Friendship, Life, Pregnancy, Relationships

The Latest Posts

Baby comes home
Birth Stories
They went in for a 38-week appointment… and came home with a baby

At 38 weeks pregnant, they expected a quick check-in with their doctor and then to head back home to keep preparing for their baby’s arrival.

Updated Aug. 27, 2025
Birth Stories, Baby, Birth, Parenting
A mom talking about six grade kids
Parenting
Why sixth grade is the year your tween’s confidence needs the most protection

The “sixth grade social shake-up” is real—here’s how parents can help their kids navigate it.

Updated Aug. 27, 2025
Parenting, Child, Teen, Teen Issues
A dad with his kids
Parenting
When kids call for mom nonstop, this dad knew exactly what to do

In the reel, Mom is working, cooking, or maybe just sitting down for 90 seconds of peace, and the kids are calling her nonstop.

Updated Aug. 27, 2025
Parenting, News, Viral & Trending
News
Most parents are now going into debt to raise their kids—and it’s reshaping family life

Parenting, in 2025, is starting to feel like a luxury purchase.

Updated Aug. 27, 2025
News, Viral & Trending
News
This 9-year-old’s first words to his foster baby brother will stay with you

“It was a Sunday and he wanted to stay in his Sunday best, suit and tie, to meet his newborn foster baby brother,” Garcia said.

Updated Aug. 27, 2025
News, Viral & Trending
News
The joy in a baby’s smile: What a viral reunion teaches us about infant bonding

Joy. Recognition. Relief. All in under seven seconds.

Updated Aug. 27, 2025
News, Viral & Trending
Big brother
Parenting
Big brother gathers his friends to walk sister to kindergarten—moms can’t stop crying

There’s something about the mix of big-hearted protectiveness, sibling teamwork, and tiny hands holding tight that makes this clip impossible to scroll past without smiling or tearing up a little.

Updated Aug. 27, 2025
Parenting, News, Viral & Trending
Mom holding infant's hands
Baby Health
Mississippi declares emergency as infant deaths rise—the crisis every parent should know about

Since 2014, more than 3,500 Mississippi infants have died before their first birthday.

Updated Aug. 26, 2025
Baby Health, Baby, Children's Health, Health & Wellness, News

We believe in creating a world in which all mothers are thriving

Connect

  • Contact Us
  • Advertise With Us

About Us

  • Our Story
  • Careers At Motherly
  • Partner with Us
  • Press
  • Privacy & Security
  • Accessibility
  • Terms & Conditions
  • About Our Ads
  • Do Not Sell My Information
  • Glossary

© 2025 Motherly. All Rights Reserved.

×