The Happy Bubble

Following the birth of your baby, you go through some significant changes.

Physical changes. Mental Changes. Emotional changes. It's a time of complete upheaval and at times chaos. Leaving you feeling ungrounded and downright unstable.

It's a time to draw into your inner circle of family or friends. To put your gates up. And to tuck yourself in snug and tight.

But, how do you do that when the world around you is seemingly falling to pieces? How do you politely tell those closest to you that you want to keep this time sacred, and free of the talk of politics, or any other distressing topic?

May I introduce to you "Happy Bubble".

Happy bubble is a term I came up with after my third baby was born.

It was November 2020. Covid was still going on. And the country had just held an election. I'm sure I don't need to outline those days anymore.

My family wanted to talk about what was going on. Social media was a hotbed of political talk. It was incredibly difficult to escape.

But I had just given birth. Emotions were all over the place. And I needed stability in a time of HUGE change.

So I told my family that if I say "Happy Bubble" you were no longer able to talk about any topic in the news.

I made it clear, that unless there was an immediate threat, that was going to physically harm my children or me, the topic was not allowed to enter the bubble.

The only time I would allow what might be distressing topics to be talked about, or viewed, would be when I knew my mental state could engage, without taking a downturn.

It's been almost 4 years since I first used my "Happy Bubble" term. And it's still a frequent part of my vocabulary.

Motherhood is stressful. And certain seasons of motherhood have been more distressing than others. And the more distressing ones require me to pull up my bridge, enter my bubble, and put all my mental energy into my inner circle. Without the distraction and distresses outside the bubble.

And you know what? When I declare a bubble for a while, I can much more easily engage with what is outside the bubble, and not have it affect my mental state.

How about you? Do you feel the need to withdraw for a time during certain seasons of motherhood? Is a happy bubble what you need?