The Shared Motherhood Experience and A Hysterectomy at 37 with Rachel Lee.

Welcome Thrivers! I’m so excited to bring you another guest episode of Thriving Parenting. Today, I’m joined by the incredible Rachel Lee, an award-winning photographer, mom of three boys, and a passionate advocate for embracing the full spectrum of motherhood—the beautiful, challenging, and everything in between.In this episode, Rachel and I dive into her deeply personal journey of motherhood, beginning with the struggles she faced as a first-time mom. She shares how a traumatic birth, sleep deprivation, and breastfeeding challenges made her question whether she was cut out for parenting. Over time, Rachel reframed her mindset, learning to embrace the ups and downs of motherhood and finding joy in the process.Rachel also opens up about her decision to expand her family, her approach to navigating hard seasons, and how her perspective shifted with each child. She candidly discusses her experience with overwhelming health challenges and her transformative decision to undergo a hysterectomy—a choice that profoundly improved her quality of life and parenting journey.We also talk about Rachel’s powerful passion project, The Colors of Motherhood. This photography series captures the raw, unspoken realities of motherhood and pairs them with stories from moms of diverse backgrounds. Rachel shares how this project helps validate the hard emotions of motherhood, fosters connection, and gives voice to feelings often left unspoken.Throughout this episode, Rachel and I reflect on how motherhood reshapes our identities, teaches us about resilience, and challenges us to seek support and let go of perfectionism.In This Episode, We Cover:The emotional rollercoaster of becoming a first-time momReframing challenges and embracing the seasons of motherhoodHow each child brings a unique experience and healingRachel’s journey through chronic health struggles and the decision to have a hysterectomyThe inspiration and stories behind The Colors of Motherhood projectPractical self-care tips for busy moms (yes, including how a keep-cup can be life-changing!)Why asking for help is an act of courage, not failureAbout Rachel Lee:Rachel Lee is a mum of 3 zestful boys, who are 8, 6 and 3 who teach her how to enjoy the moment, even when it’s full body tackles. Her motherhood experiences have been both joyful and challenging and through parenting her boys, she has discovered more about herself than she ever expected. She is also the creative force, founder and photographer behind Scribbly Gum Photography. She is an International award-winning photographer, and most recently, also received the Illawarra Women in Business award for Outstanding Customer Service.Rachel has a deep passion for capturing the essence of motherhood in all it’s forms - motherhood is more than the beautiful moments of love and connection. She has created a Colours of Motherhood Magazine. This is a collection of stories from a diverse group of mums, who have each shared a challenge they have faced in motherhood. Rachel has created an image to represent the feelings each mum faced when navigating their challenge. She created this magazine to try and start to change the narrative of experiencing challenges in motherhood as common, and not have it being equated to personal failings. She hopes that mums reading it will see that they are not alone in their feelings and experiences.Rachel is also a volunteer photographer for Heartfelt, an organisation that provides photography services for families who have experienced stillbirths, premature births or have children with terminal illnesses. For these families, photography can be an important part of their healing process. Rachel has also supported and trained newer photographers starting their volunteer journey with Heartfelt.Prior to working as a photographer, Rachel was working in physical rehabilitation as an exercise physiologist. It was in this work that Rachel learnt about the importance of being able to hold space and provide opportunities for difficult conversations to be had. Connect with Rachel: Website: https://scribblygumphotography.com.au/Colours of Motherhood Magazine: https://scribblygumphotography.com.au/product/colours-of-motherhood-magazine/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scribbly.gum.photography/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/scribbly.gum.photography/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachel-lee-photographer/Watch my free empowerment video and in less than 20 mins, gain some healthy Instagram perspective to help you to stay clear and become mindful of the Instagram vortex. For more information on this topic, head to the show notes: Episode 38 Show NotesAnd I’d love to hear your thoughts on this episode! Come and connect with me on Instagram at @sleep_thrive_grow.And click the +Follow button to never miss an episode. New episodes are released every Tuesday!To find out more about how I can support you, visit my website here.