Becoming a mom has changed Maren Morris' life in the best possible way, the country star said. But motherhood hasn't come without its challenges.
The singer got candid about some of the struggles she experienced after welcoming her first child in a new Sunday Sitdown interview with TODAY’s Willie Geist, which aired on Dec. 4.
In March 2020, the early days of lockdown, the 32-year-old gave birth to her son and first child Hayes. Shortly afterwards, she said she began to experience postpartum depression.
“I think a lot of identity crises happened there,” she said.
Morris went on to explain that everything seemed to converge at once and create extra pressure for her.
"Not just being a new parent and a new mother and dealing with postpartum depression for the first time, and reeling from that, and trying to like find the forest through the trees. But also just knowing my worth without someone clapping for me," she said.
During her maternity leave, Morris spent her time at home reflecting and writing some new music with her husband, singer-songwriter Ryan Hurd. Given her emotional state at the time, the music wasn't very cheerful.
"I wrote a lot (of songs) in late 2020 that were really introspective, but really sad. And they didn’t feel productive, honestly, to my mental health," she explained.
Writing about your pain can be cathartic but it can also be counterproductive, as Morris soon learned.
"It was like, 'Can we just please write something light to pull me out of this pandemic doldrum? I don’t wanna, you know, sit in the ashes very long here,'" she said.
With the help of her husband, Morris started to heal.
"He kind of just helped me in song form, and in just conversation form, figure out how to get to the light," she said.
Becoming a mother eventually inspired Morris to be more vocal and use her platform to speak out on issues that she’s passionate about.
“I think it’s gotten more galvanized since I’ve had my son, that I am really trying to make something beyond music,” she said. “And I want people to look around at my shows and realize, ‘OK, this is really loving, and safe, and comfortable.’"
Since then, the singer has spoken out about plastic surgery and the expectation that women should bounce back after giving birth. She's also fended off parenting haters. And it looks like she's just begun to find her voice.
Related: