Yasmin Johnson
Tell us a bit about yourself?
Hello!! I am a 30 year old new mum to my baby girl, Noa who is nearly 8 months old. I've been with my partner for 6 years, 2 of those years we've been engaged and were actually due to get married this Friday... damn Covid! I have lived in Canberra since a kid, but being born in Cairns, I am a QLD supporter - judge me as you will. Eldest of 5 girls, I come from a big family that is loud and energetic in all the good ways. I love to eat, travel and try to enjoy every facet of life at every opportunity.
What were you doing before babies?
Before Miss Noa was born, I was working full time as a Primary School Teacher. It's a career I absolutely love and can't wait to jump back into it. I also did a podcast with my sister which took up a lot of time as well, but again, loved it! When I wasn't doing that, Steve (my partner) and I loved to explore the outdoors, have a sneaky bevvy or two with friends and family and just had all round fun.
How did you come to be a mum?
I had always thought that I would want to wait until after we got married to start having kids, but during 2020, my want, need and natural mother instincts were knocking on the door and overwhelmed me. So I just asked my partner.. can we start trying for kids? Surprisingly, he just said... Yes! We did get a positive test the first round of trying but unfortunately, after 5 weeks I bled pretty heavily. At the time Steve was working in the mines and we were all in lockdown. I had never felt so distraught in my life. It was a dark place I had never been before and it took a lot of healing of the heart and soul to move past it. When Steve returned from the mines we tried again and we got another positive result...this time I was more cautious.. We felt we couldn't really celebrate in fear of what happened previously. We slowly, started telling friends and family from the 8 weeks mark. Even at the 12 week scan, it didn't feel real. I tell you what though, freaking morning sickness made it feel real! My pregnancy had no complications, however I felt bloody awful 90% of the time and did not get that glowing pregnant vibe. At 38 weeks, a Thursday night, I woke up to my waters breaking but no contractions. On the Friday night we went, induced Saturday morning where contractions came on hard and fast and I am not one with a high pain threshold so the Epidural was demanded. Had a nap, woke up felt some cramps, they checked me out and they said I was ready to push!! 5 minutes later, after a few push's and laughs, Justin Bieber and Aus open playing in the background, Noa Alexandria Johnson was placed on my chest and I was all of a sudden a mum.
What has your feeding journey been like?
Amongst everything, it was breastfeeding that brought on the anxiety before Noa was even born. I have inverted nipples and it was something that I didn't even realise was different until I was a teenager. During my pregnancy I read blogs, articles and everything I could to find out if it would affect my ability to breastfeed and everything said it would be fine, but that did not ease my anxiety about it. Fast forward to post birth and I am sitting in the hospital trying to feed my little girl. It was a nightmare. The nurses said I had the right technique, my nipples weren't that inverted to cause an issue, she's two weeks early so her mouth is too small etc etc. But all I could feel in my heart was that I was failing my daughter. Feed after feed was a screaming frenzy and and in between I was being milked like a cow so that I could feed her from a bottle. In the first month I tried and tried and tried and there were times where she latched, but it was never consistent and I just kept blaming myself. It was until I talked to more mums, I realised that everyone had feeding issues in their own way, I even found out both my Aunties have inverted nipples and went through the same thing! Finally I was starting to feel like I wasn't alone. In the end Steve and I thought for my mental wellbeing that we would give Noa formula which has worked beautifully for us. I miss breastfeeding (when it happened) because I felt very connected to Noa during those times and it is definitely something I want to try again with our next baby.
What has sleep been like in your house?
Sleep has been awesome! We have been very lucky in this department. From a very early age Noa slept through the night and because she is bottle fed, Steve and I take turns each night in the case that she does wake up one of us gets up and settles her.
The hardest bits…
The hardest bit so far would have been my breastfeeding journey, I was so hard on myself unnecessarily. It affected my mental health and my connection to Noa during that time.
The best bits…
Everything has been the best. Every milestone, every smile. I have to say though, seeing Steve so naturally be a dad has been highlight for me. Also, my younger sister had a baby boy 2 weeks after me, so it has been awesome to go through it all with her and see our kids develop together!
How do you make time for you?
Before lockdown, I would go out for dinner and drinks with my best gal pals once a month while Steve looked after Noa, which was amazing. Also, my morning HIIT Republic sessions were a way to start the day by looking after myself before anyone else in an energetic and positive way.
What’s next for you and your family?
Take each day as it comes really! I am going back to work 4 days a week next year which I am excited about and we do really want to have another kid but that wont be for another year until we try. Hopefully we get married in August 2022 (hopefully we don't have to reschedule again due to Covid) and enjoy all our other friends and family having kids. We are really excited that Noa will grow up with so many of our friends kids too!
A piece of advice for our readers?
Talk, ask questions and lean on your fellow mummas out there. I cannot recommend this enough. It was literally my saving grace. The more I shared my woes, the more I realised I wasn't alone and that was everything.