Read the interview with Sigrid about what her daily life looks like with 3 small children and what healthy habits she tries to inculcate in herself.

Sigrid, you have recently become a mother of twins and you have 3 children in total. How did the birth of twins affect you and your family’s life?

A lot has changed. The focus of my life has now shifted from work-friends-traveling-other life to family life. Family was the most important thing before, but there was more freedom and time. Now, most days are still spent at home or walking with the stroller. The new job as a mother of 3 children is still very fresh, barely 2 months, I’m sure there will be more time as the children grow, but right now I’m happy if I can find a few moments a day for myself. What has changed the most in the family is probably that my partner Priit Ailt is now more involved with the older child (4-year-old Ben) and other logistics. I am physically at home all the time and ready to talk, but most of the time my hands are tied with the twins.

You are currently breastfeeding your twins. Why did you decide to offer breast milk to your children?

I think the first choice of all mothers is to give their babies breast milk, as it is confirmed by specialists to be the best choice for babies. Often, mothers simply can´t provide it to the child in various reasons. Everything has gone very well for me on this journey, there is enough milk and the children are accepting it, so I’m probably just lucky.

After having children, many women complain that they have difficulty feeling feminine enough. How does the topic of femininity make you feel and what recommendations can you give to other women who have given birth?

The way how you feel comes from your own head, it depends on how confident you feel as a woman. I think that if you have just given birth, haven’t slept and are short on time, you don’t need to immediately feel like a superwoman. Initially, life, activities and energy should be brought into balance. If you want to enhance your femininity, then the most effective way is probably to focus your thoughts on how beautiful, powerful and sexy you are. This helps, for example, by listening to related podcasts while walking with a stroller. Secondly, you can help yourself to feel like a woman externally: wearing dresses and skirts, applying make-up, fixing your hair. For me, femininity is more about taking care of yourself. For example, I really enjoy face masks and massages; I like my nails painted; from time to time I use self-tanning products to make my face more tanned; some mornings I make a braid. These are small things that I don’t get to every day, but this kind of self-care gives me a fresher and better feeling, even when I look in the mirror.

The statistics of the World Health Organization show that women are in a higher risk group for contracting various diseases. How do you rate your health? Has the birth of children affected your physical or mental health in any way?

Diseases come when the body is more susceptible and weaker. The best thing a person can do is to prevent diseases by strengthening the body with useful nutrients, exercising, getting enough sleep, and getting positive emotions by spending time with friends/traveling/hobbies – whatever works for whom. I myself feel very well and healthy both mentally and physically. I don’t have much time to sleep, exercise, read books, meet friends, but I do as much as I can. If, for example, I haven’t been able to train for several days, it becomes more of a priority the next day. I don’t even have to consciously think about it, the body knows what it misses and the choices come naturally.

It is a month dedicated to women and women’s health. What healthy lifestyle habits have you implemented into you daily life and what would you recommend to others? Why?

Reading and researching about it probably contributes to a healthier lifestyle. Even if you don’t consciously change anything, subconsciously you still make healthier choices. One good habit that my first child taught me is going to bed early and taking a nap. I often had plans to continue working in the evening or to be busy during the child’s nap, but when I went to read the child a bedtime story, I also felt asleep. I am grateful for that. Other tasks can be done later when the child is awake, but you can only sleep when the child is also sleeping. A good way I brought reading back into my life was inspired by the language learning app Duolingo. I have been doing at least one lesson every day for 2 years, which takes about 3 minutes. I decided to do the same with reading books, to read a few pages every day, then I can’t use the lack of time as an excuse, I can still find 10 minutes a day. In this way, regularity is created and I can still finish the book in the end. This way of doing things is recommended to create new habits: a little bit every day. One healthy habit I would recommend to everyone is getting enough sleep. There is more and more information about how many parts of the body need sleep and how harmful lack of sleep can be, so sleep who can! In general, I consider my lifestyle healthy enough: I enjoy working out and have never felt a lack of motivation, my favorite food is fresh salads and I drink a lot of water. There are also unhealthy habits and it could always be better, but balance is important and life should also be enjoyed.