Parenting with Intention: Why Healing Yourself First Matters Most
Parenting Isn’t Just About Caring for Your Children—It’s Also About Caring for Yourself
In this powerful feature on The Maternity Leave Podcast, Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist Reesa Morala, LMFT, reminds parents of a truth that is often overlooked: your well-being is the foundation for your children’s well-being. Parenting, she explains, is not only about meeting your child’s needs but also about tending to your own healing, growth, and self-care. Without that inner work, parents can find themselves overwhelmed, burned out, and repeating cycles they never wanted to pass on.
With more than a decade of experience supporting parents, couples, and families, Reesa offers both professional insight and heartfelt encouragement. She blends her expertise as a therapist with her lived understanding of what it means to show up authentically as both a parent and a partner. Her message is clear: when you care for yourself, you create the emotional bandwidth to care for others in healthier, more intentional ways.
The Conversation
Hosted by Saríce Holley, RD, this episode takes an honest look at the challenges of modern motherhood. Together, Saríce and Reesa unpack how difficult it can be to balance the endless responsibilities of raising children with the ongoing need for relationship satisfaction and personal fulfillment.
Too often, moms feel like they have to choose between their children’s needs and their own. Reesa challenges this mindset, pointing out that self-care isn’t selfish—it’s essential. When mothers make their own wellness a priority, they not only recharge themselves but also model resilience, strength, and emotional intelligence for their children. Kids learn more from what they see than from what they’re told. By witnessing their parents’ commitment to self-care, they absorb the lesson that their own well-being matters too.
The discussion also highlights the power of breaking generational cycles. Many women carry wounds from their own upbringing—patterns of parentification, perfectionism, or people-pleasing that unconsciously shape how they parent. Reesa explains how therapy and intentional inner work can help mothers notice these patterns, understand where they come from, and take small but powerful steps toward change.
Reesa’s Core Belief
At the heart of Reesa’s message is a belief that has shaped both her personal and professional journey: when you prioritize your own healing, you teach your children that wholeness—not perfection—is what creates a safe, loving home. Children don’t need flawless parents; they need parents who are real, present, and committed to growth.
Key Takeaways
Personal healing fuels parenting. Your growth gives your children a foundation for theirs.
Self-care is non-negotiable. It equips parents with energy, clarity, and patience.
Strong relationships support strong parenting. Nurturing your partnership strengthens your family.
Practical tools help. From dreamfeeding strategies to small daily rituals, simple practices ease the load.
Inner work breaks cycles. Healing your own wounds stops harmful patterns from being passed on.
Authenticity matters more than perfection. Showing up real is more impactful than striving to appear flawless.
This episode is both validating and practical. It reassures parents that they are not alone in the struggle and provides realistic steps to create healthier family rhythms. By embracing self-care and healing, parents can model a new way of living—one where love is grounded not in exhaustion or sacrifice, but in balance, presence, and wholeness.
If you’re in Murrieta, CA or anywhere across California, learn more about my parenting therapy intensives and parenting classes for more support.
