When a viewer stumbles onto Libby Ward's "Diary of an Honest Mom" TikTok page, they'll find videos that range from the silly to the serious.
Among them is one from last September where Ward performs a lighthearted robotic chicken dance but also shares her relatable experience as a mom.
"One thing about me is that when I was growing up, I was a really fun person to be around," Ward began in the short video clip. "And so I got married to my husband young, and we did so many fun things and it was so great, but then we decided to have some children. And I love them very much but I was really overwhelmed because no one told me that you have to keep thinking literally all day and all night, and anticipating everybody's every single need, and deciding when to feed everyone and what to feed them and where they go, and ... paying bills and doing all the things in my brain that you can't see."
"And that made me so much less fun than I was before. And then I was resentful and jealous of my husband because he was still able to be so fun. And so I talk about this, because I know I'm not the only one," Ward concluded.
In nearly one minute, the mom of two from Ontario, Canada, summed up what commenters agreed was the complicated reality of what motherhood can look like.
"Wow. I know this is comical but you broke it down in a way that makes so much sense. i'm so overwhelmed. Thanks for letting me know it's OK," wrote one TikTok user.
"I needed this. I didn't know I needed it but here we are lol," another added.
Ward said she wanted to make the post to reach out to other moms.
"I just wanted to make a piece of content that made people laugh, made people feel seen, made people feel validated and made moms know that there wasn't something wrong with them for getting overwhelmed or for not being the fun parent," Ward said.
But she's also realistic about her experience and said she understands that not everyone will share what she has now or what she has gone through.
"I don't like to tell mothers that it will naturally just get easier to be fun as your kids get older because the reality is, if you don't have a partner or if you have a partner who's not available or not willing to share in a load of parenting and taking care of the household tasks, that's going to limit your capacity to do those things," Ward added.
As a full-time content creator, Ward simply wants to shine a spotlight on what moms go through, including the mental health issues surrounding motherhood.
"My mission is to really open up hard conversations that aren't being heard about motherhood so that I can inspire change in the hearts of mothers and the homes across Canada and the U.S. so that women can feel more balanced and prioritize themselves," she said.
For other moms who might be struggling one day or on top of the world the next, Ward said her main message is one of empowerment.
"By taking care of your own needs, you can be the parent you want to be," Ward said. "You are worth taking care of and by doing that, you're gonna be better able to show up for your kids in the way that you want to show up."
