Celebrating Mother's Day is not only a fun way to show appreciation to those who love you unconditionally, but it also offers important psychological benefits.
Our ability to connect with the world around us begins with our connection to our mother. Even when we developed in our mother's womb, she was already taking care of us, providing us with a safe environment and the nourishment we need.
More than 70 years ago, psychologists discovered that the relationship of parents, caregivers and especially the mother affected a child's ability to form lasting attachments throughout his or her life.
Throughout our early years, we expect mom to teach us how to connect with the world at large. And while this initial connection with our birth mother is an important part of this process, it extends beyond birth to include adoptive parents as well.
Children who were loved, nurtured and encouraged grew into healthy, confident adults. On the other hand, infants who spent their formative years in a high-stress environment, unsure that their needs would be met, grew up to be anxious adults who had difficulty developing meaningful attachments during adulthood.
Regardless of who we are as a product of genetics or the environment in which we are raised, there is no doubt that our mothers or mother figures play a key role in helping us become the people we are.
They comfort us, encourage us, care for us, and sustain us in more ways than most of us can name. In doing so, they help teach us what it means to be a strong and caring force of love and support for those around us.
Celebrating Mother's Day allows us to reflect on who we want to be as a family and how we are all connected to each other, a gift that Mom is sure to appreciate, no matter how it's packaged. Whether it's your mother, grandmother, favorite aunt, teacher or friend, the women in our lives shape and define us in ways big and small.
Happy Mother's Day to all the moms who give wings and encourage their children to fly!
