Stylist, lifestyle guru, mother of two and wife of Australian singer Guy Sebastian, Jules Sebastian has always spoken candidly about the ups and downs of motherhood.
Especially when it comes to parenting a newborn.
Now with two older kids – Hudson (six) and Archer (three), Jules said that she struggled with something common to a lot of new mums – the immense exhaustion and sleep deprivation that comes with looking after a mini human that is completely dependent on you.
Speaking to 9Honey, she said that period in her life was harder than she “ever anticipated or imagined it would be.”
“I would always be exhausted,” she said. “I did that transition into motherhood badly, but I can talk about it more honestly now. At the time, I couldn’t understand what just happened to my life.”
At that point she was juggling taking care of a baby, a toddler, her career, while also producing content for her website and video series Tea With Jules.
She would also catch herself comparing herself to other new mums who seemingly loved the process.
“I’d see some mums cradling their newborns and I’d sit there, running on an hour of sleep, thinking, ‘I’m not good at this’,” she said.
For a behind-the-scenes peak at the relationship of Guy and Jules Sebastian listen to I Don’t Know How She Does It. Post continues after audio.
Finally after two kids, it’s now something she’s come to accept about herself.
Speaking to the Thinker Girls in November of last year, she admitted that she was “just not a newborn person.”
“If I’m just gonna be frank right now, maybe I’m just not a newborn person. I found that phase of life super-duper exhausting, hard,” she said to hosts Stacey June and Kristie Mercer.
However, there was one thing she did that changed everything.
She finally surrendered, decreased her workload and stopped “being everything to everyone.”
“I’m in the moment. I’m in the car now with my kids singing songs, I’m not road-raging cos I’ve got five emails to get back to and everyone’s at me,” she said.
And it’s something she wishes she could tell every new mum out there today, even though the stylist knows it’s the exact opposite of what any new mum wants to hear.
“Take that time for yourself,” she said to 9Honey.
“I know how that sounds, I would have punched someone in the face if they had of said ‘make time for yourself’ to me back then, but it seriously makes a difference – even two minutes to do some deep breathing.”