How To Deal With Mom Guilt In One Easy Step

Mom guilt is widespread, affecting almost every mother, especially new ones, who feel guilty over numerous parenting decisions such as the balance between attentiveness and freedom, work commitments, and daily parenting choices. This guilt often stems from societal, familial, and self-imposed pressures to meet unrealistic expectations of perfect motherhood, leading to physical and mental health repercussions and negatively impacting mothers more than fathers.

Key sources of mom guilt include the pervasive ‘good mothering’ ideology, which equates motherhood with time-intensive, child-centered activities, ignoring the significance of quality interaction and emotional support.

A shift in mindset, recognizing that quality time is more valuable than the quantity spent, is essential in alleviating mom guilt. Effective parenting involves nurturing, responsive, and autonomy-supportive interactions that do not necessarily require a substantial time commitment but demand patience and a commitment to quality. Overcoming mom guilt also involves empowering oneself with knowledge and confidence in parenting choices, focusing on science-based information rather than societal judgments.

Accepting that perfect parenting is unattainable and striving for the best decisions under given circumstances can mitigate feelings of guilt. Seeking a supportive community and prioritizing self-care is crucial for improving mental well-being and overcoming the challenges of mom guilt.

Mom guilt is so ingrained in our culture that it is seen as a “natural” occurrence.^​1​

Almost every mom, especially new parents, experiences guilt for several reasons – for being too attentive or not enough, for allowing the child too much freedom or not enough, for spanking or not, for too much screen time or ice cream.

Mothers’ most common guilt-inducing decision is working – the full-time working mom guilt, the stay-at-home mom guilt, or the juggling both responsibilities and feeling both tasks suffer guilt.

Every day, mothers everywhere are burdened with unwarranted guilt.

Most of their guilt comes from their families, friends, and society, but the worst comes from themselves. 

A simple shift in mindset can change all of this.

What is mom guilt

Mom guilt or parent guilt is the feeling that you have done something wrong, causing harm to your child, regardless of whether this is true or not. It may also arise from not being able to meet the expectations of being a perfect mother.

Usually, mother guilt is accompanied by shame.

Guilt often co-occurs with and is exacerbated by feelings of inferiority, exhaustion, confusion, fear, and anger.

Some mothers also feel angry, both at themselves and at those who make them feel guilty.^​2​

Effects of mom guilt

The constant guilty feelings and the unrealistic expectations placed on mothers can harm their physical health, mental health, and productivity.^​3​

Mother’s guilt is more common than father’s guilt. The feelings of guilt seem to affect primarily moms, not dads^​​.^​4​

Parenting is hard work.

Transitioning into motherhood is associated with a higher risk for psychiatric distress^​5​, hormone changes^​6​,  and sleep deprivation.^​7​

The work-family guilt makes it even worse.

It can impact a woman’s general well-being by increasing their risk for depression or anxiety.^​8​

Negative emotions such as tension, worry, frustration, distress, anxiety, and guilt are more prevalent.^​9​

Their job and life satisfaction are also lower.^​10​ Mothers are also more likely to compensate by being permissive ​11​, a parenting style associated with negative outcomes in children.

Where does mom guilt come from

There are a variety of cultural factors that contribute to mommy guilt and shame. 

At a macro level, we have the ‘good mothering’ ideology, shaping our perceptions of what constitutes a good mother.

At a meso level, mothers compare themselves to others in the community.

On a micro level, mothers experience guilt and pressure from their experiences at home.^​2​

In the US, the ‘good mother’ ideology is child-centered and time-consuming.^​11​

A good mother finds a balance in her life and arranges play dates for her children while maintaining a smooth-running household.

They enjoy organizing bake sales and throwing birthday parties.

A good mom should always be giving and present.

Motherhood should surpass all other identities.

Women have mom guilt for getting frustrated, exhausted, or angry in their attempts to satisfy these skewed and unrealistic expectations of good mothers.

One shift in mindset is all you need

Did you notice what’s wrong with this version of a perfect mom?

Mothers are often judged by their time commitment to their children and how much time they spend doing things for them. 

There is no mention of how much a mother loves her children in this definition of a good mother.

As if holding a bake sale is equivalent to loving her children.

The corollary is that moms who do not have time to hold bake sales are not good moms.

Isn’t that ridiculous?

No wonder mothers feel guilty all over the country.

Moms need to stop feeling guilty because…

Time Spent Does Not Always Equal Quality Time.

As someone who grew up in an abusive and dysfunctional family said, “I would choose a busy yet nurturing parent over an abusive stay-at-home parent any day.”

Spending time does not automatically translate into being a good parent.

Also, not spending much time does not automatically make one a bad parent.

What matters is the quality of interaction between the parent and the child.

Children’s academic performance, for instance, is linked to the quality rather than the quantity of parental homework involvement. Supportive homework help improves achievement, while intrusive homework help has a negative impact ^​12​.

So the good news is you don’t need to spend much time to make it quality time.

Being a better mom does not mean doing more or giving more time, but rather spending quality time and doing things in your child’s best interest.

How to create quality parent-child interactions

Even if you spend very little time with your children, make every minute count.

Rather than nagging about homework or chores, spend time connecting with them, supporting their emotional needs, and creating a high-quality parent-child relationship.

Forget about doing Pinterest-perfect crafts; listen to your child talk about their day.

At the end of the day, your relationship with your child and their happiness is more important than getting all A’s or having a spotless house.

Parental characteristics that are associated with quality interactions include:

• Warm and sensitive
• Responsive
• Autonomy supportive
• Validating
• Emotion-coaching
• Inductive discipline
• Positive attitudes
• Accepting

None of these qualities require a substantial time commitment. However, parents must be patient and committed.

Mom’s self-esteem

Even though we know quality matters more, it’s hard to remain unaffected by social media or comments from society.

Why do we care so much about what random people say about our parenting?

How come outsiders can so heavily influence our self-esteem?

Unfortunately, it could be genetics.

University of Oxford researchers Elliott and Wattanasuwan believe that the emergence of individual identity is inextricably linked to the collective social identity.^​13​

Humans are group animals. Social interaction is essential for self-identity.

In order words, we yearn for social approval.

Who “I am” is constantly defined and redefined by comparisons.

Scientists have found that self-esteem comes from two sources – a sense of social worth and a sense of personal efficacy.^​14​

We do not experience ourselves as simply positive or negative but as socially acceptable (self-liking) and how strong or weak we are (self-competence).^​15​

We can’t tell the media to shut up (although it would be a huge favor to the world if it did).

We cannot change ourselves to meet the impossible standard and appease everyone.

We also cannot make everyone give us social approval.

But we can work on the sense of personal efficacy by gaining competence and removing feelings of inadequacy.

So, to overcome the mom’s guilt, we must strengthen our competence in parenting knowledge.

Mom guilt psychology

We feel guilty when we have or think we have done something wrong. The problem with mom guilt is that mothers often feel guilty when they have done nothing wrong. 

Mothers tend to feel guilty for things that they are not responsible for.

For example, some working mothers cannot control their need for an income to support their families. But they still feel guilty for being at work instead of staying home with their children.

Whenever mothers are blamed for these decisions, they are assumed to have full control, which is not always true.

In most cases, mothers do their best in their circumstances. They should not have to feel guilty about things out of their control. 

It is not their fault that some decisions are made under imperfect conditions.

How to overcome mom guilt

Knowledge is power.

Competence comes from knowing we’re capable, effective, and in control.

It is impossible to control everything that happens to us, but we control what information we allow ourselves to receive.

One of the best ways to deal with mom’s guilt is to empower ourselves with facts and science-based parenting information.

The important thing is that when you are making the best decision with the information you currently have, you are making the right decision.

The next time others don’t agree with your fact-based parenting, the first step is to take a deep breath. If they only rely on their opinion instead of science or facts, be confident in your choices. 

Don’t feel guilty about things you can’t change.

In one way or another, we have all made decisions that turned out to be unwise. The worst mom guilt is when you think you have made a decision that harms your child.

But no one can foresee the future. All we can do is make the best decision with the info we have at the time.

Having accurate information about parenting can relieve guilt and improve our self-confidence.

Good parenting is not about making perfect decisions. It is about making the best use of available information and resources.

Head in the sand parenting 

While some media outlets attempt to stir controversies and make parents feel terrible about their parenting, others attempt to provide comfort by helping them bury their heads in the sand.

They reject science or brush it aside when scientists point out harmful traditional practices.

They reassure parents to trust their instincts and follow what has been done for generations, regardless of what science says.

They also accuse those who provide credible scientific information of hurting or shaming moms.

This is head-in-the-sand parenting. You can pretend it doesn’t exist if you don’t see it.

But the keyword here is “pretend”.

Anyone can pretend or believe anything they want, but it won’t change the facts and science.

Find a balance

Using science-based information in parenting does not mean following the science to the letter.

Life is full of tradeoffs.

Knowing as many facts as possible before you decide will help you balance your child’s needs and your own needs.

Burying your head in the sand may feel better at the moment, but it won’t help you become a better mother.

Not being able to follow the best science-based practice exactly due to individual circumstances is not being a bad mother. A good enough mother makes the most of what she has.

But if the parent feels judged, gets angry, and rejects it outright without even considering it, they allow their emotions to take over instead of acting in their children’s best interest.

Refusing information is not the same as not having information or not having perfect conditions.

Whether you accept or reject information is a choice within your control.

Keep learning

Science doesn’t tell us everything. But it allows us to uncover more about human being development.

Things will keep changing as technology advances.

We must keep learning.

Learning can be a burden to busy parents.

In school, I never imagined I had to learn how to use a smartphone as a mom. But it has proven very useful daily, so I still did.

Learning never stops in life. It also shouldn’t stop when we become parents.

With an open mind, we can learn and do better every day.

Final thoughts on mom guilt

Self-esteem doesn’t develop overnight.

It is hard to get over the mom guilt syndrome and personal insecurities if you are surrounded by people who constantly make you doubt yourself, putting additional pressure on you.

Find people who share your values.

Look for a supportive community that can encourage each other but not just serve as a sounding board.

Together, you will learn more.

Self-care and alone time are also important to improve a mother’s mental well-being, which benefits her child.

If proven too difficult, professional support such as a family therapist can help.

Parenting is hard, but there are some easy ways to simplify it. Check out Why Parenting Is Hard And 5 Simple Ways To Make It Easier

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