Writing With Hope

Writing, Motherhood, and Resilience: Honoring Women’s Strength on International Women’s Day

Posted on March 8, 2025 Updated on March 10, 2025

A few days ago, I had a crazy, unexpected trip to the emergency room—one that completely changed my perspective on health, motherhood, and the many roles we carry as women. It started with severe abdominal pain on my right side, which turned out to be acute appendicitis with localized peritonitis. My appendix had perforated, I had sepsis, and my body was fighting a serious infection.

The doctors ran a CT scan with contrast, and instead of emergency surgery, I was admitted, put on IV antibiotics and fluids, and kept in the hospital for several days. I had no appetite, I couldn’t eat, and between pain meds and medical updates, I tried to keep working because that’s just what we do. As a writer, a mother, and a woman, pushing through is ingrained in us.

Now, after several days in the hospital, I’ve been sent home with weeks of antibiotics to bring the infection down before I can have an appendectomy. The doctors are hopeful that this approach will help avoid complications, but there is a small risk they may need to remove part of my colon. They’re optimistic that with careful monitoring and the right treatment, surgery can go smoothly without the need for a colostomy bag. For now, I’m focusing on recovery and taking things one step at a time.

When Mom is Sick: The Weight of Motherhood

As much as I was in pain, the hardest part wasn’t just the illness itself—it was being away from my kids. My youngest son is especially attached to me, and every day I spent in the hospital, my heart ached for him. When a mom is sick, everything shifts. My husband was holding down the fort, but the absence of a mother hits differently for children. They missed me in a way that was deeper, more disorienting. As women, we are so often the emotional anchors of our families, and when we’re gone, it’s felt.

Juggling the Roles: Author, Mother, Wife, Woman

Even in the hospital, I found myself juggling multiple hats. I wasn’t just a patient—I was still an author working on book revisions, approving cover designs, and managing conversations with my publisher. I realized that some types of work were easier than others while recovering. Editing was manageable, but drafting new material? Impossible. Creativity demands energy, and pain takes it away. Instead of forcing myself to push through everything, I leaned into what I could do.

International Women’s Day: Celebrating Our Strength

This experience reminds me just how much women carry. We are mothers, creators, caregivers, professionals—leaders in our communities and in our homes. And yet, when we are unwell, the world doesn’t stop for us. We keep going. We find ways to show up, to nurture, to create, and to lead—even through exhaustion, pain, and recovery.

As a BIPOC woman, a mother, and an author, I know that the resilience we carry isn’t always by choice—it’s by necessity. International Women’s Day is a moment to celebrate that resilience, to recognize the strength in every woman who juggles it all and still finds a way forward. It’s also a reminder that our health is just as important as everything else we care for.

So to all the women out there—the mothers, the dreamers, the creators, the fighters—this day is for you. May we celebrate not just what we do, but the incredible strength it takes to do it all. And may we remember that taking care of ourselves is just as important as everything else we take care of.

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