Motherhood isn’t easy—you have your good days and your bad. Randi Zinn, mother of 6-year-old Micah and 2-year-old Zarah, believes that you should never feel alone through this journey. The author of Beyond Mom, Zinn welcomes mothers from all walks of life to her panel, Living Motherhood Authentically, encouraging them to speak with like-minded individuals as well as those who are approaching motherhood a bit differently.
“The idea really came from celebrating motherhood in a way that felt less traditional and more about all of the different ways we can do motherhood right from the mouth of mothers who are doing it in different ways,” Zinn says. “I brought together a group of women—women who I thought would really cover the spectrum and would have different stories to tell based on how they navigate professionally. We wanted this event to feel very community-driven and a space where women from all different neighborhoods and involvements would want to come take part in a discussion.”
As the crying and diaper changes turn into a blur, it is inevitable that help will be needed, which is why Zinn fully supports the idea of a “mom tribe” so women have the opportunity to reach out and hear from others who are struggling just as much as they are.
“Any woman that has had a baby understands that you can very quickly feel isolated because you feel exhausted and don’t really have the energy to pursue anything new or reach out too far,” Zinn says. “To have access to women who are in that same pocket of working so hard to just keep it together, there’s a certain kind of exhale you can take when you’re around people who just get it. What’s really interesting to see is different tribes blossoming and seeing women who are having babies at certain periods of time want to talk to women that are literally in that same development space with their kids.”
Taking the concept of a “mom tribe,” Zinn puts her own spin on it, creating an environment where women can find themselves once again and connect with others who are going through what they are experiencing as a new or veteran mother.
“‘Beyond Mom Tribe’ is for women who really care to take time for themselves and recognize how valuable it is to have that introspection and that interest in who the woman is inside of the mom,” Zinn says. “I tend to pull together a tribe of women who are introspective and seekers of something. I see the magic happen when those women come together in a purposeful way—you really hear each other, you learn from each other, you feel validated, you feel like you’re not alone.”
From taking care of the children to the house to yourself, it takes a lot to be a mother, which is why it is so easy to get drained. However, Zinn has advice for those who are looking to get out of a rut.
“You have to recognize that you can’t just be a mom, work, serve everyone else and not have space and not step away to do your own thing. Every mom—whether it’s asking your husband or partner to step in or swapping time with another mom, like, ‘I’ll watch your kids for three hours, the next day you watch mine’—you [should] figure out ways to create space for yourself to go do whatever you need to do to feel energized or to simply get a break,” Zinn says. “In many ways, where there’s a will, there’s a way, but you have to commit to creating it whether it’s at home or outside the home.”
With Mother’s Day coming up, a day of celebration and appreciation for motherhood and family, not only should mothers spend time with their families, but should treat themselves as well, according to Zinn.
“Our culture sometimes doesn’t do enough of the repeat things that make us stop and think about what’s important,” Zinn says, “Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, any of these days where we slow down and appreciate the people who are in our lives, is important. Women want to feel—mothers want to feel—that they are being recognized, so it’s wonderful to have a day where you can really focus on that.”
Overall, Zinn and her Beyond Mom community offer a welcoming environment for mothers who are looking to step outside and truly understand the joys of being a mother, despite all of the struggles along the way.
“I’m really about not just telling women what to do, but providing spaces and experiences that women don’t have to try too hard. They come to be introspective and take care of oneself,” Zinn says.
For more information on Randi Zinn and Beyond Mom, visit beyondmom.com!
