Welcome To Maternal Instinct - A Letter From The Founder

Hey there. If you are reading this then you are probably looking for a little more insight as to what this project is about and want to learn more.

Well, here's the story of what inspired this project.

My journey as a mother started at the age of 19. I was getting to the end of my first year in college, I had come to the US all the way from Kenya to start my college career and now things were going to look a whole lot different than what I thought. I remember the day I found out I was pregnant. It will never escape my memory. Mostly because any 19 year old trying to navigate a new country and stay focused while studying while throwing in a few exciting times would not be elated at the thought of being pregnant in their first year, BUT I was.

It was a few days before my period was about to start so I had no reason to worry. I walked into the cafeteria for dinner about 3 hours before I was to show up to a dance performance. (I was a great hip hop dancer and choreographer. Maybe I'll get back to it sometime). I could not stand the smell. That was when I knew something was off. The excitement I always had when I would walk in and get a whiff of the amalgamation of smells coming from the shrimp fried rice, hot waffles, stir fry, fried chicken and fries had turned into the most horrid thing in what seemed like the blink of an eye.

My stomach churned as I walked spiritedly (aka sprinted) passed the salad bar, that wasn't anything new :), and as I got closer and closer to the doors, I began to feel relief. I had never been pregnant before but for some reason I knew, without a doubt in my mind, I was pregnant.

So I continued to sprint all the way to the closest store and got myself a pregnancy test. I took the first one and burst out in nervous laughter. And the thought crossed my mind "your pee is probably off because you haven't eaten. Maybe if you eat it will turn negative!". Yes, I know how it sounds. I know now and I knew then. But still, I went back to the cafeteria and mustered up the courage to get a little something in my belly then went and took the test again. LOL! You won't believe what happened next, it showed that I was negative!

I knew it. I knew all I had to do was get some food in me and everything would be fine. So I went ahead and got dressed for my dance. But it still bothered me that I had such a weird reaction to the smell of foods earlier. Oh well, it was going to remain a mystery to me.

For the sake of reassurance I decided to take one more peek at the test so I could go in peace and dance my heart out. And another miracle happened. IT HAD CHANGED TO POSITIVE. Turns out that second test just needed a little time to simmer.

I left my room in disbelief and excitement rolled into this big ball of silence. This was not normal for me. So as I sat with my dance partners and said nothing, one of them noticed and asked what was going on. I told her and her eyes grew wide. It was in that moment I sighed my first sigh of relief. Someone else other than me knew. We went on to have a great show and I was so happy.

If you are still reading this, don't worry, I'm getting to the point. Stay with me :)

Over the next few years, because I chose not to get married to the father (spoiler alert we got married 6 years later), I came up against people who would write me off. Some who would see me as used goods because I was a single mother. I would interact with people who told me I should have known my value and not let a man use me and many other harsh words. But I also had people in my life that encouraged me. Held me in high regard. Held my hand and guided me. Supported me in my wins and my losses. I had a tribe.

Retrospectively that journey coupled with my own mental, physical, and emotional struggles with motherhood, and a desire I've had since the age of 12 to support women and girls were just the experiences I needed to catapult me into a series of events that would lead me down

a path of growth, self reflection, and love. Through this growth I have interacted with mothers that have had the best of experiences in their motherhood, some who had been beaten by the world and still stay standing, some who the world has beaten the life out of them and are barely hanging on, some who lost their children...but all of them with such big mother hearts that just needed some love, support, nurturing and the knowledge that they are not alone in this journey.

Motherhood sometimes is Pinterest and Instagram worthy but also has a dark side that in many countries and cultures is still taboo to speak about. As such there are so many things that remain hush

hush that cause mothers to lose out and children to suffer. And that's where we come in.

Maternal Instinct aims to be that safe space where mothers can come and find a tribe that will support them. We believe that addressing maternal health is important for the health of the family and the society in general. Our focus on the emotional, spiritual, mental, physical and financial wellness of the mother is based on the idea that if all these areas are addressed, there can be a balance that is found and each area feeds into the other.

We do not have a perfect system, neither do we believe that we are the authority on all these areas, but we know that there are many opportunities to collaborate and learn from each other.

We welcome you into our community and look forward to building a space together where mothers can come and thrive