What All Moms Need to Remember on Those "Hard" Days

You don't really know how tough parenthood can be until you become a mom. From the sleepless nights and early mornings to the weight of knowing that a tiny person depends on you to keep them alive, it can be overwhelming.

As a new mom, Shannon Hankes has a newfound understanding of how hard it is trying to do the right thing when you don't always know what that is — and learning to forgive yourself when you get it wrong. "It's hard to feel like your world is so small. But, you are their whole world. You are who they need," she wrote on Instagram. "You have the soul to love them, not just on their hard days, but on your hard days too."

The incredible thing about moms is that even when you are beyond tired and feel like you can't do it anymore, you wake up every morning and do it all over again. "On the days you feel like you can't make it, just remember you can," Shannon wrote.

Shannon points out that during these times, it's important to not only remember that you're physically capable of being a mom, but that you're staying present and reminding yourself of why you're doing it in the first place.

You blink and they are 8. Then 28. And then they are parents, resembling a you you once were. So take it in, mama. Let them climb into bed with you any hour of the night. Sing that song they requested for the tenth time. Hold them a little tighter when all they want is to shower with you and feel your skin against theirs. Maybe in raising children you lose your mind a little bit. But, boy, do you find your soul! Embrace the exhaustion. The overwhelming. The hard days. And all the joy.