--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: With my mother, I felt helpless all the…" description: "\"“With my mother, I felt helpless all the time. Sometimes I feel helpless as a mother, but I know it’ll pass. And this time, there are things I can do t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b78/hope-edelman-26438_mother_with-my-mother-i-felt-helpless-all-the-t_911987.png" --- # With my mother, I felt helpless all the time. Sometimes I… ![“With my mother, I felt helpless all the time. Sometimes I feel helpless as a mother, but I know it’ll pass. And this time, there are things I can do to make it better. For example, Rose cries whenever I put her in the stroller, but once I start pushing the stroller, she’s happy. I remind myself…” quote by Hope Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b78/hope-edelman-26438_mother_with-my-mother-i-felt-helpless-all-the-t_911987.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b78/hope-edelman-26438_mother_with-my-mother-i-felt-helpless-all-the-t_911987.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b78/hope-edelman-26438_mother_with-my-mother-i-felt-helpless-all-the-t_911987.png) > ““With my mother, I felt helpless all the time. Sometimes I feel helpless as a mother, but I know it’ll pass. And this time, there are things I can do to make it better. For example, Rose cries whenever I put her in the stroller, but once I start pushing the stroller, she’s happy. I remind myself that crying is her way of expressing herself, because she can’t speak, whereas my mom cried because she felt pain, and I didn’t know how to make it stop.”” [Hope Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-edelman/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Feeling helpless as a mother is normal; recognizing a child's cues and responding can improve the situation. **In simple terms:** Parenting involves learning to interpret and soothe a child's needs. Key Takeaway Observe, interpret, and respond to cues. Themes parenting empathy growth Mood empathetic hopeful Type personal inspirational When to use this quote - daily routines - stressful moments - caregiver support Key Concepts child development emotional regulation Questions to Reflect On - What strategies help differentiate a child's needs from our own? - How can we stay patient during repeated distress? A Different Perspective Over‑reliance on interpretation can misread signals. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mother/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [“My mother, of course, had a different opinion. 'They're driving me crazy!' she said, swatting at them with her beige Coach handbag. 'How can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mccafferty/my-mother-of-course-had-a-different-opinion-they-re-driving-me-crazy/) [Megan McCafferty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mccafferty/) > [“Ooh that’s him!” my mom cried jumping up and down. “Why don’t you date him, mom? You seem to really like him,” I smiled.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/micalea-smeltzer/ooh-that-s-him-my-mom-cried-jumping-up-and-down-why-don-t-you-date/) [Micalea Smeltzer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/micalea-smeltzer/) > [My relationship with my mother has always felt like the most complicated relationship of my life. I know I have a lot more writing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendy-c-ortiz/my-relationship-with-my-mother-has-always-felt-like-the-most/) [Wendy C. Ortiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendy-c-ortiz/) > [Call me communist, but I think that's something that everyone, regardless of their family's income, has a right to, and I was fortunate enough…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liev-schreiber/call-me-communist-but-i-think-that-s-something-that-everyone/) [Liev Schreiber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liev-schreiber/) > [“Not like his mother. Even as he felt guilty for leaving her, he hated her for it. Leaving home was what kids were supposed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ania-ahlborn/not-like-his-mother-even-as-he-felt-guilty-for-leaving-her-he-hated/) [Ania Ahlborn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ania-ahlborn/) > [I've felt like an outsider all my life. It comes from my mother, who always felt like an outsider in my father's family. She…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hopkins/i-ve-felt-like-an-outsider-all-my-life-it-comes-from-my-mother-who/) [Anthony Hopkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hopkins/) > [“I began for the first time to really understand the loss my adoptive mother must have felt from not having her own child. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zara-phillips/i-began-for-the-first-time-to-really-understand-the-loss-my-adoptive/) [Zara Phillips](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zara-phillips/) > [Having children can smooth the relationship, too. Mother and daughter are now equals. That is hard to imagine, even harder to accept, for among…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-quindlen/having-children-can-smooth-the-relationship-too-mother-and-daughter/) [Anna Quindlen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-quindlen/) > [That wind. I see it's blowing now. Furtive but commanding, it has dictated every move we've ever made. My mother felt it, and so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-harris/that-wind-i-see-it-s-blowing-now-furtive-but-commanding-it-has/) [Joanne Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-harris/) > [When I lost my mother, I felt like I was at the bottom of a well. I felt like a robot that had to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joao-cancelo/when-i-lost-my-mother-i-felt-like-i-was-at-the-bottom-of-a-well-i/) [Joao Cancelo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joao-cancelo/) > [“It's not that your mother didn't love you,' the boy named Crow says from behind me. 'She loved you very deeply. The first thing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/it-s-not-that-your-mother-didn-t-love-you-the-boy-named-crow-says/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [Once in my life I knew a grief so hard I could actually hear it inside, scraping at the lining of my stomach, an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/once-in-my-life-i-knew-a-grief-so-hard-i-could-actually-hear-it/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“But as I stood watching her, I realized how truly hard it was,really, to see someone you love change right before your eyes. Not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-dessen/but-as-i-stood-watching-her-i-realized-how-truly-hard-it-was-really/) [Sarah Dessen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-dessen/) > [ I lost my partner \[Anselmo Feleppa\] to HIV then it took about three years to grieve; then after that I lost my mother. I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-michael/i-lost-my-partner-anselmo-feleppa-to-hiv-then-it-took-about-three/) [George Michael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-michael/) > [As a woman and as a mother, as a young mother, I felt guilty about being successful.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lily-allen/as-a-woman-and-as-a-mother-as-a-young-mother-i-felt-guilty-about/) [Lily Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lily-allen/) ## More by Hope Edelman > [Rachel Resnick's story of love lost and love sought cracks open the timeworn addiction narrative to release something raw, probing, brave, and redemptive. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/rachel-resnick-s-story-of-love-lost-and-love-sought-cracks-open-the/) [Hope Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-edelman/) > [Writers seek to create order out of the chaos of everyday life, and to extract meaning from both the tragic and the mundane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/writers-seek-to-create-order-out-of-the-chaos-of-everyday-life-and-to/) [Hope Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-edelman/) > [“I see the enormous value of a mother's presence because I live everyday with its absence.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/i-see-the-enormous-value-of-a-mother-s-presence-because-i-live/) [Hope Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-edelman/) > [I couldn't chance failing in New York yet, letting the city fail me. It was the only place I knew I belonged. If I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/i-couldn-t-chance-failing-in-new-york-yet-letting-the-city-fail-me-it/) [Hope Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-edelman/) > [Someone did us all a grave injustice by implying that mourning has a distinct beginning, middle, and end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/someone-did-us-all-a-grave-injustice-by-implying-that-mourning-has-a/) [Hope Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-edelman/) > [Our lives are shaped as much by those who leave us as they are by those who stay. Loss is our legacy. Insight is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/our-lives-are-shaped-as-much-by-those-who-leave-us-as-they-are-by/) [Hope Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-edelman/) > [The degree to which a surviving parent copes is the most important indicator of the child's long-term adaptation. Kids whose surviving parents are unable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/the-degree-to-which-a-surviving-parent-copes-is-the-most-important/) [Hope Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-edelman/) > [There is an emptiness inside of me -- a void that will never be filled. No one in your life will ever love you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/there-is-an-emptiness-inside-of-me-a-void-that-will-never-be-filled/) [Hope Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-edelman/) > [“A daughter whose mother chose to leave her or was incapable of mothering may feel like a member of the emotional underclass, like a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/a-daughter-whose-mother-chose-to-leave-her-or-was-incapable-of/) [Hope Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-edelman/) > [“Witnessing a mother's slow physical decline can be the equivalent of of experiencing long-term trauma. The daughter's feelings of helplessness, anger, and fear persist.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/witnessing-a-mother-s-slow-physical-decline-can-be-the-equivalent-of/) [Hope Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-edelman/) > [“Even though we knew she was going to die eventually, when it happened it was still a terrible, rude shock. I thought I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/even-though-we-knew-she-was-going-to-die-eventually-when-it-happened/) [Hope Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-edelman/) > [New York City is filled with random, quirky moments like this, chance collisions that just might change your life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/new-york-city-is-filled-with-random-quirky-moments-like-this-chance/) [Hope Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-edelman/) > [I truly believe that the death of my mother has made me the way I am today. I am a survivor, mentally strong, determined,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/i-truly-believe-that-the-death-of-my-mother-has-made-me-the-way-i-am/) [Hope Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-edelman/) > [When a mother dies, a daughter’s mourning never completely ends.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/when-a-mother-dies-a-daughter-s-mourning-never-completely-ends/) [Hope Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-edelman/) > [“Grief needs an outlet. Creativity offers one. Some psychiatrists see mourning and creativity as the perfect marriage, the thought processes of one neatly complementing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/grief-needs-an-outlet-creativity-offers-one-some-psychiatrists-see/) [Hope Edelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-edelman/) [Explore all 21 Hope Edelman quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-edelman/) ## More Mother quotes > [My mother says I didn't open my eyes for eight days after I was born, but when I did, the first thing I saw…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-taylor/my-mother-says-i-didn-t-open-my-eyes-for-eight-days-after-i-was-born/) [Elizabeth Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-taylor/) > [Laughing, laughing, laughing, laughing! It is the jester! A voice from the Void, to cheer poor Cicero! I accept your gift, dearest Night Mother.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-tullius-cicero/laughing-laughing-laughing-laughing-it-is-the-jester-a-voice-from-the/) [Marcus Tullius Cicero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-tullius-cicero/) > [(knitting while on a motorcycle) "For several years she knitted in secret (my father would not approve; she was to concentrate on motorcycling and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-zimmermann/knitting-while-on-a-motorcycle-for-several-years-she-knitted-in/) [Elizabeth Zimmermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-zimmermann/) > [The biggest change for me as a mom was realizing I needed to put someone else before me. Now the hardest part about the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-alexis/the-biggest-change-for-me-as-a-mom-was-realizing-i-needed-to-put/) [Kim Alexis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-alexis/) > [My mother was strong-willed, demanding, and very supportive all at the same time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-spence/my-mother-was-strong-willed-demanding-and-very-supportive-all-at-the/) [Michael Spence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-spence/) > [Everything comes home, my mother used to say; every word spoken, every shadow cast, every footprint in the sand. It can't be helped; it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joanne-harris/everything-comes-home-my-mother-used-to-say-every-word-spoken-every/) [Joanne Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joanne-harris/) > [I would give anything to be able to kick a ball with my son or read the kids a bedtime story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rob-burrow/i-would-give-anything-to-be-able-to-kick-a-ball-with-my-son-or-read/) [Rob Burrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rob-burrow/) > [Being a new mother is a blessing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phaedra-parks/being-a-new-mother-is-a-blessing/) [Phaedra Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phaedra-parks/) > [Named after my mother.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bonnie-raitt/named-after-my-mother/) [Bonnie Raitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bonnie-raitt/) > [One of the ways that I discovered my confidence and my ability to overpower is becoming a mother. Suddenly, my world wasn't about myself…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lights/one-of-the-ways-that-i-discovered-my-confidence-and-my-ability-to/) [Lights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lights/) > [When will society, like a mother, take care of all her children?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/horace-mann/when-will-society-like-a-mother-take-care-of-all-her-children/) [Horace Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/horace-mann/) > [Surely, if Mother Nature had been consulted, she would never have consented to building a city in New Orleans.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mortimer-zuckerman/surely-if-mother-nature-had-been-consulted-she-would-never-have/) [Mortimer Zuckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mortimer-zuckerman/) > [Peace is the first thing the angels sang. Peace is the mark of the children of God. Peace is the nurse of love. Peace…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-leo-i/peace-is-the-first-thing-the-angels-sang-peace-is-the-mark-of-the/) [Pope Leo I](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-leo-i/) > [I'm a strange mixture of my mother's curiosity; my father, who grew up the son of the manse in a Presbyterian family, who had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rupert-murdoch/i-m-a-strange-mixture-of-my-mother-s-curiosity-my-father-who-grew-up/) [Rupert Murdoch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rupert-murdoch/) > [Guns have little or nothing to do with juvenile violence. The causes of youth violence are working parents who put their kids into daycare,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-delay/guns-have-little-or-nothing-to-do-with-juvenile-violence-the-causes/) [Tom DeLay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-delay/) [Browse all 24,507 Mother quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mother/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“With my mother, I felt helpless all the time. Sometimes I feel helpless as a mother, but I know it’ll pass. And this time, there are things I can do to make it better. For example, Rose cries whenever I put her in the stroller, but once I start pushing the stroller, she’s happy. I remind myself that crying is her way of expressing herself, because she can’t speak, whereas my mom cried because she felt pain, and I didn’t know how to make it stop.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Hope Edelman" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/with-my-mother-i-felt-helpless-all-the-time-sometimes-i-feel-helpless/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Mother" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/with-my-mother-i-felt-helpless-all-the-time-sometimes-i-feel-helpless/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b78/hope-edelman-26438_mother_with-my-mother-i-felt-helpless-all-the-t_911987.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b78/hope-edelman-26438_mother_with-my-mother-i-felt-helpless-all-the-t_911987.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b78/hope-edelman-26438_mother_with-my-mother-i-felt-helpless-all-the-t_911987.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“With my mother, I felt helpless all the time. Sometimes I feel helpless as a mother, but I know it’ll pass…” — Hope Edelman", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Hope Edelman", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hope-edelman/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“With my mother, I felt helpless...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/with-my-mother-i-felt-helpless-all-the-time-sometimes-i-feel-helpless/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hope-edelman/with-my-mother-i-felt-helpless-all-the-time-sometimes-i-feel-helpless/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```