December 07, 2020

Self-Discoveries in Motherhood During COVID-19 with Dulce Irving

56 minutes

We learn best from experience because it’s through experience that we discover how we work. It is also what keeps us moving forward. We can learn from experience that we are not alone and we can live through difficult times.

This week, Dulce Irving joins us to talk about her experience being a new mom during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dulce gives us insights into the mental health challenges she faced during this period. She also shares her learnings from traveling, her childhood Christmas memories with Tim, and her tried-and-tested financial tip — the storehouse principle.

Listen to this episode if you want to learn from Dulce’s experiences in motherhood, travel, and finance.

3 Reasons to Listen:

Learn how to deal with mental health challenges as a new mom during COVID-19.
Discover how traveling around the world can improve your well-being.
Gain a perspective on how to handle your finances better using the storehouse principle.

Resources

Episode Details

About Dulce

Dulce Irving is the Operations Director of the SeekGoCreate Podcast and its sister companies. She enjoys traveling and is also working on projects about motherhood. And all this while being a full-time daughter of Tim, wife, and mom.

If you'd like to reach out to Dulce, you can contact her on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

Episode Highlights[05:35] Being a New Mom This 2020

While being a new mom is the biggest blessing and joy, it is also Dulce's greatest challenge, especially in 2020.
Dulce gave birth on February 8, 2020, after three days of ongoing labor.
Her baby’s ‘colicky symptoms’ made her worried because of the recent talks about COVID-19 at the time.

[09:42] Pros and Cons of Having a Baby During COVID-19

Dulce did not feel like she was missing out on anything. It was already a relief to see and quarantine together with her family despite being in different households.
Aside from being nervous about their food and other resources, her postpartum appointment was postponed. This might have led to her inconsistent thyroid medications.
Dulce started getting into a downward spiral. Eventually, she overcame this together with her team of doctors.
During this time, she realized the importance of taking care of herself postpartum.

[17:25] Tips on Being a Mom This Pandemic

Dulce admits that there might be many contradicting information for moms out there upon giving birth.
However, she says that she’s glad she followed her instincts in taking care of her child.
She learned that she has to mentally prepare herself for the toughness of labor and the postpartum period.
Work on your mindset and shift your perspectives so that you would not let your thoughts get the better of you.

[17:26] “There's a lot of information out there when you are a new mom, I was trying to consume as much information as possible until I realized that it all contradicted each other.” - Click Here to Tweet This[21:47] Dealing with Unmet Expectations

Dulce's mother had fast labor and deliveries. However, her labor story turned out differently than what she had expected.
Despite preparing her body through her healthy lifestyle, she still experienced over 75 hours of contractions.
She shares that stepping into motherhood involves a feeling of wanting to control more than you can.
Dealing with unmet expectations includes letting go of this ‘control,’ trusting the process, and putting your faith in God.

[27:35] Lessons from Her Travels

After finishing college, Dulce felt the need to leave and get out.
Dulce signed up as an au pair to go overseas. She traveled across countries and made friends in places such as Rome and Australia.
Despite her occasional frustrations, she saw traveling as a fun experience because she learned a lot about herself.
Looking back, Dulce learned that she is incredibly strong. She recalls that she was her best self in those years.
Listen to the full episode to learn more about Dulce’s remarkable insights on traveling.

[34:16] “Those years of traveling, of being spontaneous, of going wherever I'm wanted to go. Those were the years that I should have let trickle into my late 20s, and I should have continued being that despite what the world told me.” - Click Here to Tweet This[36:31] Social Media and Mental Health

Comparison only makes Dulce think that she needs to look a certain way to be successful. This thinking only made her regret how she chose to live.
Dulce reminds us to avoid having to compare ourselves with others.

[37:48] “So we can hear 100 times, don't believe everything you see on social media, that's just their highlight reel. I think that we can hear that a million times. But at the end of the day, if we're still going to have an attitude of comparison … it's still going to affect us.” - Click Here to Tweet This[40:00] Childhood Christmas Memories

Tim joins Dulce in reminiscing how Christmas decorations were put up in the Winders household.
The Winders have a tradition of giving special gifts on Christmas night, such as a dog or a surprise trip.
Listen to this episode to know what Christmas is like in the Winders’ household.

[45:17] The Storehouse Principle

The Storehouse Principle is based on scripture, which talks about setting aside resources for your family.
Dulce recommends us to live below our means.
Listen to the full episode for more information on how Dulce and her husband allocate their money.

[47:02] “When we've had abundant income coming in, when we've had little income coming in, those accounts just continue to grow.” - Click Here to Tweet This[49:09] What’s Next for Dulce?

Dulce says that she is choosing to let God's will be done. She believes that a big part of her assignment this season is to work on herself for her family.
She shares that she has already done the ‘go’ and ‘create’ in the ‘Seek, Go, Create.’
Her current focus is on seeking a better understanding of herself, others, and God.

[50:21] “We are working on becoming not a perfect family, obviously, but we're perfecting becoming a family.” - Click Here to Tweet This