BY Nkosazana Ngwadla
When South African actress and entrepreneur Omuhle Gela had her daughter two years ago, she, like any mother, was over the moon – the love of her life and biggest motivation had finally arrived.
Like many millennial moms, Omuhle shares her struggles, challenges and victories in her motherhood journey on her social media but after a while, she noticed many other moms started reaching out to her with their experiences.
Omuhle envisaged creating something where moms from all walks of life – young and old – could spend the day together without their little ones and at the beginning of 2021 she founded Mom’s Day Off.
“We gather as moms and just have good food, play fun games, interact as moms, and advise each other, uplift each other, and empower each other as women who have experienced a lot of body and mind changes that most likely birthed some insecurities,” Omuhle tells The Fuse.
All in a Day’s Work
Every day, Omuhle wakes up at 4 AM and gets ready to play Nomaswazi – a character on the most watched soap in South Africa, SABC 1’s Uzalo.
“I usually start shooting at around 06:00 and literally finish at 18:00, then when I get home, my daughter is excited to see me and just wants to play and spend some time with mommy,” she says.
On top of her long days on set, Omuhle also owns a swimwear line and a nail bar in Ballito, Kwa-Zulu Natal. Although Omuhle sometimes feels overwhelmed by it all, she’s still excited about learning new ways to make parenting easier for her and having some days off.
“My daughter’s father and I co-parent, and in most co-parenting cases, the child lives with the mom, which is the same in my situation. I get help sometimes but in reality; we always envision ourselves having children when we’re married. That way, I think it’s slightly easier, tackling parenting with someone who is constantly there,” Omuhle adds.
Body Changes
Having a child changes a woman’s body in many ways and these changes can sometimes make women feel very insecure about how they look. This is just one of the topics Omuhle and the other moms discuss at Mom’s Day Off.
“We remind each other why the changes were so necessary and that we should feel good about them because they were so worth it, you know?
“We bring whole human beings to this earth, come on! Mom guilt is a real thing, but moms need to understand that there’s nothing wrong with taking a day or a few off just to think and be alone. I’m starting to spend time alone but it’s so difficult because I take my daughter everywhere.”
The Blessing of Motherhood
It’s easy to feel hopeless in South Africa with all the violence against women and children and sometimes it feels as if being a mother gets more difficult as the years go by but Omuhle insists that mothers should never lose sight of what a blessing motherhood is.
“I love everything about being a mother, I take pictures and videos of everything my daughter does, she’s the cutest little thing. Just watching a little human, you created grow; she’s started talking now, seeing her running to mommy after work, it’s all so beautiful,” she pauses as her daughter runs to show her something she’s found outside. “There’s also a bit of pressure though, just knowing that you’re responsible for grooming them into a good person.”
But again, to be a good mother, Omuhle believes women should prioritise self-care so they can be the best versions of themselves when spending time with their little ones. On her self-care days, you can find the 30-year-old relaxing at a spa, getting her nails done and just being pampered.
“A message I would like to give to moms is to just appreciate ourselves, don’t be too hard on ourselves and sit down to reflect on the beauty of motherhood, and the lives we’ve created.
“Social media puts a lot of pressure on how we should raise our children, it’s filled with a lot of opinionated people with different lifestyles and it’s easy to compare ourselves but let’s try to stay away from that dark route.
“We all mother differently, we have different backgrounds and are on different financial standings, so I think it’s imperative that we focus on how we can be moms the best way we can be. Rather take advice from your family, it’s a better way to possibly raise your child. Don’t feel less than because of external pressures,” Omuhle concludes.
