By Lori H. Gordon — 2016
How relationships are sabotaged by hidden expectations.
Read on www.psychologytoday.com
CLEAR ALL
For as long as I could remember I wanted to be one of those stay-at-home moms. Damn the two degrees and a promising career. I wanted to raise kids, go to the park, and make cute lunches for us all. Super difficult and thankless job, but I was here for it.
Mother-daughter bonds within the Black community can be powerful counters against systemic oppression. We invited four moms to share their wisdom in open letters to their daughters.
Motherhood is an identity that calls for women to forgo belonging in their romantic relationships, professional aspirations, and even the public sphere in exchange for isolation and disconnection peppered with private praise drowned out by public critique and social exclusion.
I thought motherhood would make me weak and passive but it has filled me with fury and passion instead.
Osaka’s mental health challenges are nothing new in her isolating sport. What is new is the acceptance she’ll face—and the paths back—if she takes a prolonged break.
In the past few weeks, my journey took an unexpected path but one that has taught me so much and helped me grow. I learned a couple of key lessons.
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Through the size of her platform, however, and her decision to choose well-being over pursuit of a Grand Slam title, Osaka offers the promise of bringing mental health awareness—both inside and outside of sports—to an entirely new level.
By withdrawing from competition citing concerns over her mental health, Biles showed that resisting expectations can be more powerful than persisting through them.