Episode 7 | Andrea Brambila On Mental Health, Motivation & Motherhood

by Nikki Parnell — May 1, 2020

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This week we get to chat with Andrea Brambila, a Licensed Professional Counselor and an ultra running mom from Texas. We talk about all kinds of mental health related issues that moms often face including postpartum anxiety, postpartum depression, grief from pregnancy loss, mom guilt, shame cycles we get ourselves into, and so much more. Please note that this is not a “fix you/ here’s all the answers to solve your mental health problems” conversation, but rather, moms coming together to talk through our own experiences with these things.

This episode is a long one (oops!). So I won’t write up everything about it because then you’d be here all day and you would no longer have time to go take a listen! But I’ll note a couple things I loved in this episode. For starters, Andrea addresses how we all have a vision of the kind of mom we want to be before having a baby – maybe we want to be calm, peaceful, put together. But so often motherhood looks way different than we thought it would. Andrea found herself white knuckling life in that newly postpartum time, anxious and grasping at something, anything to control. She shares her journey through postpartum anxiety and things that helped her make it through – like going to therapy, learning coping mechanisms, learning to listen to her intuition to better take care of her needs and prioritizing her mental health. Running has also always been a point of strength for her to draw from, helping her through anxiety and reminding her that she’s a strong, capable human being when she needed that affirmation the most. She remembers how hard it was when she first started running to get through one mile, and is now at a place where running 13+ miles is no big deal. But holding onto that perspective and gratitude of the progress she’s made has benefited her in motherhood, counseling, and now coaching as she helps clients step into their strength they didn’t know they had.

We touch on what it’s like to grieve from a miscarriage and what a mother needs who has experienced that. Hint, they don’t need you to tell them “at least it was an early loss!” Instead, Andrea recommends sitting with them in the ugly, uncomfortable grief rather than turning away from it. We also examine mom guilt and the myth that if you’re going to be a good mother you have to be a martyr, giving up all of yourself for your children. Your family is going to benefit from you pursuing your passions too. She gives some encouragement to communicate your wants and needs with your partner so they can show up and join in your pursuits. We discuss how to get out of negative thought patterns. At one point Andrea says, “I don’t let myself be ashamed of the fact that I’m ashamed, I’m not going to be anxious about my anxiety, I’m not going to be judgmental about how I’m judging myself…” I think that is so helpful. It’s okay to feel what we’re feeling, but let’s not add more guilt and shame and judgment on top of those feelings.

We get a little insight on how a mental health therapist parents, which often comes down to being super honest with your children and apologizing after you react poorly. Even a therapist isn’t perfect! We can’t deal with our feelings in a positive way during every challenge of parenthood, but with a little grace for ourselves and our kids, we can strive to regulate our emotions better for the next challenge that comes our way.

I think this episode will leave you feeling empowered. There’s a good chance that you, like me, will feel relieved knowing you’re not alone in your struggles – whatever they might be. Stef and I resonated with this conversation and appreciated hearing how a mom with a mental health background approaches life and has navigated motherhood, running and all the things. 

Now go listen! Five gold stars for anyone who makes it to the end! Then, please rate, review, and comment! We really appreciate it!

You can listen to the episode right here (below) or just search for Run Hard Mom Hard wherever you get your podcasts. Queue it up for your next run!

Show Notes

Nikki’s favorite thing this week: Ultimate Direction Handheld Bottle

Stef’s fave thing: Nathan Women Hydration Pack/ Running Vest VaporAiress

Find Andrea on Instagram

Read her blog here

Andrea’s favorite race: Alamo City Ultra 50k

Andrea’s dream meal: Breakfast all the time, particularly a french toast charcuterie board. See Pinterest example

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