Celebrating life as a new mother

“When am I going to get the anesthesia? Is it going to hurt? How long will it take for me to fall asleep? When am I going to get the anesthesia? Did I have a baby? Are you on ‘Scrubs’? Where’s my phone?”

Next thing I knew, it was over. I woke up in the intensive care unit with a throbbing headache. The pain was intense, but I was ecstatic. I could remember things and I could see! It was not easy to be away from my brand new baby, but I knew I had to heal in order to be able to go home and be a good mother. After four days, I was finally reunited with my baby.

The day I got home, I would not, could not put him down. It was all so surreal. I would hold him in the rocking chair and just sob. I was totally overcome with emotion. I felt so incredibly lucky, relieved, in love, blessed, exhausted, ecstatic, nervous, appreciative, and the list goes on.

Recovery took a while, I have to be honest. It was not like I came home that day and was skipping to the park, tugging Curran in a little red wagon. I had to take each day at a time and slowly get my strength back and wait for the headaches to subside. Little by little, day by day, the headaches disappeared and life finally resumed to normal. We have a beautiful healthy baby boy, and I have a sparkling new brain.

I know now that the power of love can truly get you through anything.

So now I am about to celebrate my first Mother’s Day as a mom. I have so much to celebrate.

It is such a special occasion. I think I need a new dress.

KELLY MITCHELL works as a teacher at Newport Harbor High School. Her husband, Jon, is a lifeguard captain for the city of Newport Beach. They and their son, Curran, live in Huntington Beach.