March is Women's History Month and we're excited to celebrate a few phenomenal women of the Unapologetic Tribe. We're shining a light on these amazing women and uplifting their stories of rejecting perfectionism, practicing self-compassion, and embracing motherhood. They deserve all the flowers and we think you’ll agree! Read on to be inspired. 

Sarah's Story: A Mother's Journey

I became a first time biological mom in October 2019. Nothing about pregnancy, birth or child raising was fun or magical for me. Giving birth was incredibly painful, not beautiful. Breastfeeding was a nuisance instead of bonding. And waking in the middle of the night felt like an attack on my well-being, it was not a time of feeling most connected. At one point, my husband said unmaliciously, "I don't remember my daughter crying this much", and that practically killed me. In my mind that meant our son wasn't as good as my stepdaughter. I felt like I was failing and I felt like I just wasn't meant to be a mom. It didn't come naturally as everyone said it would.

Overtime though I started doing research, spoke to the pediatrician and chatted with mom friends and everyone was saying, "oh, I went through that too! It's normal", Like what? Why are all of the real challenges and experiences hidden from women until they actually go through it? When you have a kid it's almost like you're finally welcomed into this secret club of information of how it really is, not the social media facade.

Since then I've been living unapologetically by accepting the hard times with the good, appreciating what I don't know and loving every moment with my son as he grows and learns alongside me. It's important for women to share and be honest. If you have a child know that you're not alone, you're a fantastic mom, your child is PERFECT...and you're doing everything right!

March 24, 2023

Lauren's Story: Choosing Yourself

I spent the majority of my life trying to make everyone around me happy. I am a natural born nurturer, a lover...mother hen, if you will, to anyone I come across. I would get so emotionally invested in other’s, I realized I had completely lost my own identity. Everything I did, including my “hobbies” were to make someone else happy. I found myself doing things I would never do to “fit” in.

I was surrounded by people who would never do for me what I would do for them which landed me with a felony. Wrong place, wrong time and with the wrong crowd. I woke up one day and realized I didn’t recognize the person in the mirror and it was at that moment that I decided I was going to stop living to please everyone else and start living for me! I chose me and I haven’t looked back since! It was during this time of clarity that I decided to enter rehab and found my love for holistic wellness and giving back to my community.

Today, I live unapologetically by loving myself enough to set healthy boundaries and to choose myself above all else. I realized I am no help to anyone without pouring unconditional love into myself first. It was through this clarity, I was able to find myself again and begin to do what I was born to do, which is to give back and help other’s in a healthy way. I now own my own business which gives back to our planet, communities and supports non-profits across the nation.

March 15, 2023

Jasmine's Story: Progress Over Perfection

Have a story you'd like to share?  We'd love to hear from you, too! Share your unapologetic story here. 

*Stories are lightly edited for length and clarity