My First Mother’s Day

When journalist Bridget Brennan was pregnant, a colleague remarked that foreign correspondents tend to make great mothers “because they’re used to being up all night”.

It was a comment that Bridget – a foreign correspondent for the ABC in London – welcomed. “I thought, ‘I’ve done all these tough jobs, I’ve got this!’”

She pauses, and laughs. “I did not have this.”

The first few months of motherhood were more isolating and relentless than Bridget had imagined. “It is really is 24-7. Motherhood challenges you in different ways you don’t expect.”

But, in addition to the typical demands of first-time motherhood, Bridget also faced other, pandemic-related challenges.

As the ABC’s first Indigenous foreign correspondent, Bridget had been living in London for two years and was 16 weeks’ pregnant when Australia announced it was closing its borders due to COVID-19. She and husband Josh made the lightning-fast decision to return home. “We pretty much had 24 hours to make the decision. And then we had to pack up our house and leave our London life behind and we couldn’t say goodbye to our friends or colleagues.”

Then, the day after Louis’ birth, Bridget’s father tragically passed away, and to make matters worse, her mother was unable to visit for another 10 weeks because of state border closures. (In a few months, Bridget and her family are moving to Melbourne to be closer to family.)

Despite the rocky start, Bridget is savouring her time with Louis. “He’s just so happy and funny. I love it when he wakes up in the morning because he’s so excited for the day. He’s really curious and inquisitive, and really brings a sense of wonder. I thought I would be missing my old life a lot, but it hasn’t been like that at all. He’s forced me to re-evaluate, in a good way, and brought us even closer to our families.”

“This baby is the light”

Alison Rice gave birth to baby Betty in January. She is a conscious career coach and the host of the podcast Offline.