Supporting Role

Sarah Lang sits down with Pippa Wetzell to talk about the modern work/life juggle, letting go of perfection and the part she plays for Bellyful, which sees mothers giving other mums a helping hand

- Sarah Lang

Modern motherhood isn’t easy. In the changing landscape of today’s world, many new mums don’t have family members in the same town, and can feel isolated and under pressure to be perfect, while at the same time getting to grips with breastfeeding (or not), and interrupted nights. Plus we’re surrounded by curated Instagram posts of perfectly put together women and cutely dressed babies, as opposed to piles of washing, and food ground into the kitchen floor.

Pippa Wetzell, who has daughters Brodie, 12, and Cameron, 10, and son Taj, eight, with husband Torrin, knows the challenges of becoming a mother first-hand – and believes we shouldn’t buy into the notion of the perfect mother, something heightened by the rise of social media.

“I think some mothers have feelings of inadequacy when they see some social media posts, like, ‘Oh no, I don’t have the perfect nursery’,” says Pippa, while chatting over a cuppa. “But I think there’s a bit of a social media backlash now, where more people are posting about the shit bits – the slightly more dishevelled version. Because that’s real. Maybe we should redefine what a great mother is, and if it’s good enough I think that’s great.”