{"id":133988,"date":"2024-10-23T09:48:05","date_gmt":"2024-10-23T13:48:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=133988"},"modified":"2026-05-07T13:41:33","modified_gmt":"2026-05-07T17:41:33","slug":"motherhood-myths","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/","title":{"rendered":"Dr. Shefali: Motherhood Myths Based on Tradition Harm Women"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>What myths about motherhood might be shaping your perspective as a woman? How can these <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/societal-pressures\/\">societal expectations<\/a> affect your relationship with yourself and others?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According to Dr. Shefali, motherhood myths that arise from traditional beliefs are only hurting women. Her insights reveal how patriarchal expectations can impact women&#8217;s identities, relationships, and overall well-being\u2014whether they have children or not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Read more to explore Dr. Shefali&#8217;s ideas that could transform your understanding of motherhood and womanhood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-dr-shefali-on-motherhood-myths\">Dr. Shefali on Motherhood Myths<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>According to Dr. Shefali, motherhood myths circulating in patriarchal societies tend to disadvantage women. She points to two particular societal expectations around motherhood that often influence women\u2019s identities negatively. Let&#8217;s take a look at each.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-myth-1-motherhood-is-your-most-important-role\">Myth #1: Motherhood Is Your Most Important Role<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>First, society often tells women that the most important thing they can do in life is become a mother, and that, if they don\u2019t have children, they\u2019re less of a woman. This is inherently untrue and often makes women without kids or who are unable to conceive feel they\u2019ve lost their female identity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-myth-2-motherhood-is-your-identity\">Myth #2: Motherhood Is Your Identity<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Further, society encourages motherhood to consume women\u2019s identities once they have children. Because their identity and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/sense-of-self-worth\/\">sense of self-worth<\/a> become dependent on their children, women become obsessed with being the \u201cperfect\u201d mom. This often causes mothers to put too much pressure on their kids to be perfect\u2014smart, athletic, polite, and so on\u2014because they see their kids as a representation of themselves. Further, when children grow up and move out, the mother often feels she\u2019s lost her identity because she no longer has a child to obsess over.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table><tbody><tr><td><strong>The Effects of \u201cMother\u201d as an Identity<\/strong><br><br>The pressure that the patriarchy puts on women to have children and the emphasis on \u201cmother\u201d becoming women\u2019s primary identity after giving birth has more consequences than what Dr. Shefali discusses. Some experts argue that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/commentisfree\/2023\/apr\/07\/chasm-mothers-childless-women-widening-motherhood-empathy\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">the phenomenon is creating a crucial rift between women who have children and women who don\u2019t<\/a>.<br><br>For example, many childless women feel their relationships with female friends and family deteriorate once their counterparts become mothers. As Dr. Shefali notes, motherhood often consumes women\u2019s identities and shapes daily experiences\u2014when this happens, childless women often feel fundamentally unable to relate to the experiences of their friends who are mothers. This causes them to become estranged from their friends and struggle to fit in with other women, leaving them feeling isolated.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Instead, Dr. Shefali says mothers should see their child as a separate entity that they love and support<\/strong>. They should <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-live-in-the-present-moment\/\">live in the present<\/a> moment and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/how-to-accept-things-as-they-are\/\">accept things as they are<\/a> rather than judging them as good or bad\u2014not let their children\u2019s behavior or emotions affect their own, and not judge their kids as being good enough or not. This allows them to be a stable and consistent supporter for their children. They should also work to heal their own issues so they can be the best parent they can be.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>(Shortform note: Dr. Shefali elaborates on this approach to parenting, called <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/hub\/personal-life\/relationships\/parenting\/conscious-parenting\/\">conscious parenting<\/a>, in her book <a href=\"https:\/\/www.namastepublishing.com\/the-conscious-parent\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><em>The Conscious Parent<\/em><\/a>. In the book, she explains that the fundamental principle behind conscious parenting is to recognize that children are the catalyst and guide for a parent&#8217;s personal and spiritual development. She explains that parents unknowingly pass their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/healing-emotional-pain-eckhart-tolle-emotions\/\">emotional pain<\/a> onto their children if they don\u2019t fix it. This is why parents must live in the present, detach from their ego, and release the need to be the perfect, all-knowing parent with a perfect child. Instead, they need to see their child as a companion in growth so they can both become the best versions of themselves.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What myths about motherhood might be shaping your perspective as a woman? How can these societal expectations affect your relationship with yourself and others? According to Dr. Shefali, motherhood myths that arise from traditional beliefs are only hurting women. Her insights reveal how patriarchal expectations can impact women&#8217;s identities, relationships, and overall well-being\u2014whether they have children or not. Read more to explore Dr. Shefali&#8217;s ideas that could transform your understanding of motherhood and womanhood.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":133997,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,9,24],"tags":[1642],"class_list":["post-133988","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-parenting","category-psychology","category-society","tag-a-radical-awakening","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v24.3 (Yoast SEO v24.3) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Dr. Shefali: Motherhood Myths Based on Tradition Harm Women - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Dr. Shefali Tsabary says motherhood myths arising from traditional beliefs are hurting women. Learn about two she thinks are detrimental.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Dr. Shefali: Motherhood Myths Based on Tradition Harm Women\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Dr. Shefali Tsabary says motherhood myths arising from traditional beliefs are hurting women. Learn about two she thinks are detrimental.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Shortform Books\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2024-10-23T13:48:05+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-05-07T17:41:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/mother-holding-baby.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1344\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"768\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Elizabeth Whitworth\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Elizabeth Whitworth\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Elizabeth Whitworth\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/d2928cf6c11a69ced1491d6a5b74fb13\"},\"headline\":\"Dr. Shefali: Motherhood Myths Based on Tradition Harm Women\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-10-23T13:48:05+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-05-07T17:41:33+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/\"},\"wordCount\":631,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/mother-holding-baby.webp\",\"keywords\":[\"A Radical Awakening\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Parenting\",\"Psychology\",\"Society\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/\",\"name\":\"Dr. Shefali: Motherhood Myths Based on Tradition Harm Women - Shortform Books\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/mother-holding-baby.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2024-10-23T13:48:05+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-05-07T17:41:33+00:00\",\"description\":\"Dr. Shefali Tsabary says motherhood myths arising from traditional beliefs are hurting women. Learn about two she thinks are detrimental.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/mother-holding-baby.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/mother-holding-baby.webp\",\"width\":1344,\"height\":768,\"caption\":\"A mother holding her baby, who is looking at her, illustrates motherhood myths\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Dr. Shefali: Motherhood Myths Based on Tradition Harm Women\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Shortform Books\",\"description\":\"The World&#039;s Best Book Summaries\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Shortform Books\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png\",\"width\":500,\"height\":74,\"caption\":\"Shortform Books\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/d2928cf6c11a69ced1491d6a5b74fb13\",\"name\":\"Elizabeth Whitworth\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1fff9d65a52ac4340660218e7b63ee5e365cf08e7aa7adff79a0142cd4b96f84?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1fff9d65a52ac4340660218e7b63ee5e365cf08e7aa7adff79a0142cd4b96f84?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Elizabeth Whitworth\"},\"description\":\"Elizabeth has a lifelong love of books. She devours nonfiction, especially in the areas of history, theology, and philosophy. A switch to audiobooks has kindled her enjoyment of well-narrated fiction, particularly Victorian and early 20th-century works. She appreciates idea-driven books\u2014and a classic murder mystery now and then. Elizabeth has a Substack and is writing a book about what the Bible says about death and hell.\",\"sameAs\":[\"rina@shortform.com\"],\"award\":[\"Contributions to joint task force efforts (FBI)\",\"Contributions to Special Operations Division (DOJ & DEA)\",\"Efforts to fight the war on drugs (NSA)\",\"Contributions to Operation Storm Front (US Customs Service)\"],\"knowsAbout\":[\"History\",\"Theology\",\"Government\"],\"jobTitle\":\"Senior SEO Writer\",\"worksFor\":\"Shortform\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/author\/elizabeth\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Dr. Shefali: Motherhood Myths Based on Tradition Harm Women - Shortform Books","description":"Dr. Shefali Tsabary says motherhood myths arising from traditional beliefs are hurting women. Learn about two she thinks are detrimental.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Dr. Shefali: Motherhood Myths Based on Tradition Harm Women","og_description":"Dr. Shefali Tsabary says motherhood myths arising from traditional beliefs are hurting women. Learn about two she thinks are detrimental.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/","og_site_name":"Shortform Books","article_published_time":"2024-10-23T13:48:05+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-05-07T17:41:33+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1344,"height":768,"url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/mother-holding-baby.webp","type":"image\/webp"}],"author":"Elizabeth Whitworth","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Elizabeth Whitworth","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/"},"author":{"name":"Elizabeth Whitworth","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/d2928cf6c11a69ced1491d6a5b74fb13"},"headline":"Dr. Shefali: Motherhood Myths Based on Tradition Harm Women","datePublished":"2024-10-23T13:48:05+00:00","dateModified":"2026-05-07T17:41:33+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/"},"wordCount":631,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/mother-holding-baby.webp","keywords":["A Radical Awakening"],"articleSection":["Parenting","Psychology","Society"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/","name":"Dr. Shefali: Motherhood Myths Based on Tradition Harm Women - Shortform Books","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/mother-holding-baby.webp","datePublished":"2024-10-23T13:48:05+00:00","dateModified":"2026-05-07T17:41:33+00:00","description":"Dr. Shefali Tsabary says motherhood myths arising from traditional beliefs are hurting women. Learn about two she thinks are detrimental.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/mother-holding-baby.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/mother-holding-baby.webp","width":1344,"height":768,"caption":"A mother holding her baby, who is looking at her, illustrates motherhood myths"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/motherhood-myths\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Dr. Shefali: Motherhood Myths Based on Tradition Harm Women"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/","name":"Shortform Books","description":"The World&#039;s Best Book Summaries","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"Shortform Books","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png","width":500,"height":74,"caption":"Shortform Books"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/d2928cf6c11a69ced1491d6a5b74fb13","name":"Elizabeth Whitworth","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1fff9d65a52ac4340660218e7b63ee5e365cf08e7aa7adff79a0142cd4b96f84?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/1fff9d65a52ac4340660218e7b63ee5e365cf08e7aa7adff79a0142cd4b96f84?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Elizabeth Whitworth"},"description":"Elizabeth has a lifelong love of books. She devours nonfiction, especially in the areas of history, theology, and philosophy. A switch to audiobooks has kindled her enjoyment of well-narrated fiction, particularly Victorian and early 20th-century works. She appreciates idea-driven books\u2014and a classic murder mystery now and then. Elizabeth has a Substack and is writing a book about what the Bible says about death and hell.","sameAs":["rina@shortform.com"],"award":["Contributions to joint task force efforts (FBI)","Contributions to Special Operations Division (DOJ & DEA)","Efforts to fight the war on drugs (NSA)","Contributions to Operation Storm Front (US Customs Service)"],"knowsAbout":["History","Theology","Government"],"jobTitle":"Senior SEO Writer","worksFor":"Shortform","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/author\/elizabeth\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/10\/mother-holding-baby.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/133988","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=133988"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/133988\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":149664,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/133988\/revisions\/149664"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/133997"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=133988"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=133988"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=133988"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}