May 31, 2026 – 10.39amWhen I had my first child at 43, I was surprised at how well I eased into parenting. I was the mother I’d always envisioned: calm, patient, loving and mindfully enjoying motherhood.Now, as a 46-year-old mum of a three-year-old and a one-year-old, I feel like a different person. I’m exhausted, agitated, short-fused, fuzzy-headed, my mood is low and my body aches and cracks like I’ve aged a decade in the past year. I feel brittle, physically and emotionally.Subscribe to gift this articleGift 5 articles to anyone you choose each month when you subscribe.Subscribe nowAlready a subscriber? Sassica Francis-BruceFreelance journalistSassica Francis-Bruce is a freelance health and parenting writer based in Sydney.Fetching latest articles
‘I don’t feel like myself’: The secret biological crisis of midlife mums
At 43, I was the calm, patient mother I’d always envisioned. At 46, I feel brittle, broken and completely unrecognisable to myself.
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