We met at a mum and baby exercise class & then she saved my life!
May 02, 2023
We met at a mum and baby exercise class & then she saved my life!
Well, hello there! That's me, Vicky, on the right in the image, I'll introduce wifee to you in a bit.
This is something a bit new isn’t it? Blogging! But if you’ve known me for long enough you will know that I’ll try anything once.
To be honest I find social media a little bit restrictive with how much you can ramble on in a post so blogging seems fitting to try.
Before I go on; note this. I am dyslexic. Spelling, gramma and all that jazz is not my forte, this will be published having only been checked by myself so excuse all the errors and cock ups!
If we’ve not met before allow me to tell you all about my own mental health journey that led to me starting my own mum and baby exercise classes called MummaBfit.
Let me take you back 12 years
Way back what feels like donkeys years ago (12 years to be exact) I found my local gym in Basingstoke offering a postnatal exercise class. It was sold as a 6 week return to exercise class for postnatal mums.
I signed on at 8 weeks postnatal, completely new to exercise as a new mum and if I am brutally honest; I was doing it to get me out of the house because behind closed doors I was struggling big time.
Without going too much into the class itself I did not enjoy it. I really struggled with the group exercise that involved co-ordination, it has never been my thing, they went left & I went right type of thing.
BUT, the best bit was I met my wifee. - My ride or die best mate. -My sista from another mister.
I remember walking into the second class and there she was stood by a ballet bar, I deliberately made a beeline for her because she looked on my wavelength, not sure why, she just did. The exercise class was always followed by a complimentary cuppa in the café; following some small talk Cheryl and I sat together and it was there, on that very spot, that we bonded over tea and eyeball rolling!!
She saved my life when PTSD tried to take it.
The friend I made on maternity leave saved me.
Cheryl and I have been inseparable ever since, we speak every day and our kids have grown up together. Our friendship has supported each other through some really shit times too.
At the lowest point in my life, mid divorce and at the bottom of a deep, deep, dark hole I wanted to take my life. I felt I had nothing to live for and nothing to give. I felt I could not protect my son, nor could I bare to see him in a world without his mum. I wanted to take us both.
It was Cheryl that saved me; She took me to A&E one evening and I was too emotionally drained to resist. I just wanted to feel anything but numb, I wanted to feel like I wasn’t going mad, like I could smile again and that I was worthy.
It was a trip that changed my life. Cheryl sat by my side the whole time; only she knew how much I was crumbling.
I allowed myself to be voluntarily sectioned under the mental health act to see a psychiatrist the next morning. I was diagnosed as having PTSD and ongoing postnatal depression (my son was 3)
That day felt like the biggest weight was being lifted, it was freeing and liberating. I wasn’t going mad for no reason; I wasn’t beyond help and I could learn to smile again.
It was a long road to recovery but from it came MummaBfit
I am not going to pretend that I recovered instantly; absolutely not. I still work on my PTSD triggers to this day. But in the year that followed that fateful night a few things happened.
I met my wonderful husband; by complete fluke and despite me telling him I was a nut job and he’d be better off leaving me be he said he wanted to be a friend as he thought I was pretty cool (we went on a date 3 weeks later!)
I invested in my health and worked with a personal trainer and exercise became a part of my recovery; I loved it.
From this love I qualified as a fitness instructor and personal trainer.
My ethos and mission has always has been strong
It was from this, on my hen do in 2016 with my wifee and other best mate Ems, laid on sun loungers in Dubai that we got to chatting about how we met. (Ems and I had been friends for years but grew closer than close when our kids were born, motherhood does that, brings you close to those you need the most)
We talked about the loneliness of motherhood. The fear around returning to exercise as a postnatal mum. All the mum and baby music classes but very few mum and baby exercise classes. We talked about about the lack of support and knowledge of a postnatal body and exercise and how delicate it is.
Cheryl turned to me and said these exact words “think about how we met, you have the qualifications, you should create classes for other mums to meet and exercise”.
And this was how MummaBfit was born in 2016, the business plan was written on the back of a Etihad sick bag on the way home - kept it classy!
MummaBfit came from my own postnatal journey, meeting my best friend at a mum and baby exercise class in Basingstoke who later saved my life.
MummaBfit is here to bring mums together, to get them out of the house, to make them feel less alone, to help them feel good.
You might not get a butt like J-Lo or a waist like Kim K, but you may meet the Ying to your Yang, your wifee, soul mate and bestie.
In our mum and baby exercise classes, my self and my awesome instructor are fully qualified in postnatal exercise along with antenatal exercise and a whole host of other stuff.
But above and beyond everything our ethos is to get you out of the house, beat to loneliness of motherhood, get you surrounded by love and those that get it. The exercise is just an added bonus.
Unsure if we are for you?
Don't be fooled into thinking we are a big scary gym, far from it.
Just me, 12 mums, kiddies in tow and a lot of laughter. I don't take exercise seriously, Mummas is about so much more than that.
Come try us for free if you are unsure or drop me a message and lets chat. We are all socially awkward and unsure; but we all have our own back story and issues and the one thing that is for sure is that we are all here for each other!
Follow this link to grab yourself a taster week
I can not wait to meet you - I've perfected the art of tea making!
Vicky xx
Are you struggling? Please please do not struggle in silence. The one thing I have learnt os that speaking out and asking for help is the hardest thing to do but the most rewarding thing to do. Here are some links that I found invaluable:
