We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Kristin Johnson a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Kristin, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s the kindest thing anyone has ever done for you?

There have been many kind things that people have done for me in my life, but the thing that stands out to me the most is something one of my closest friends did for me after I had my second child.

Having a new baby is much different than one would expect. What you see on Instagram or Facebook, isn’t always the reality that plays out when you’re exhausted, sleep deprived, drained and just trying to cope with such a huge change in your life. You literally become a different version of yourself.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s a gift to be a mom, but not many people talk about the reality of how you’ll feel when that baby goes from quietly inside of you to loudly in your outside world.

I’d already done it once before because this was my second child, and I seemed to cope pretty well after awhile; but I wasn’t expecting to experience the onslaught of anxiety and the darkness of postpartum depression that I did. This was supposed to be a joyous time. After all, this was not just my second baby, but my rainbow baby after having 2 miscarriages in less than 6 months of each other.

Nevertheless I found myself in a dark place for awhile, needing help. Thankfully I have a very supportive husband who helped in the best way he knew how, but I have a very close friend who is like a sister to me, who came along side me and helped me in ways only a woman and fellow mom could understand. This precious friend of mine recognized the symptoms because she too had experienced something similar after she had her first child.

She started off by just having her home open to me any time I needed to get out of the house to breathe and leave my toddler and newborn with my husband for a little bit. I’d come over, she’d make me a coffee and always had snacks for me to enjoy. Then when my husband was at work, if I was having a day where it felt like the walls were closing in and anxiety was rising, I could pack up the kids and head over to her house for coffee and food. She answered my frenzied texts with kindness and encouragement. She also would take me for drives with the baby in the back just to get me out and about. She did this for as long as I needed, while still taking care of her own children, never making me feel like a burden. Eventually those dark feelings subsided and the amount of times I needed to get out in that way lessened. I got on a good routine and started to feel like the new version of myself as a mother of 2 kids. It was such a God-given gift in a time that I needed it most. My friend truly helped me through that season more than she realizes. It’s been over a decade now, all of our children are now in junior high and high school, but that act of sisterly love and kindness at the hand of my friend is something I’ll never forget. And the beautiful thing is, she truly still is that person.

Never underestimate the power of being a good friend.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My career is a homemaker, but I’ve been a writer since I was a child. I’ve been journaling for years and had the desire to start a blog where I could share the things I’ve been learning in life as a woman, wife, mom and most of all, a Christian. My desire is to refresh others with encouragement and wisdom and to revive weary and broken hearts with the healing power of God’s love. So I started the brand Simply Relevant Life over a decade ago, to be one of the outlets where I could reach outside my 4 walls to bring those things mentioned, to others. You can find my content at simplyrelevantlife.com!

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

I think the thing that most non-creatives have a hard time understanding is the amount of overthinking that can tend to go into the creative process. Creativity isn’t always inspired, and we can often experience a lack of motivation or artistic block in doing a project that’s worthwhile or writing something that we believe is meaningful enough or helpful enough to share with others. Because really the ultimate goal IS to share the gift with others and to make an impact.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

The biggest lesson I had to unlearn, especially in the journey to starting a blog, is the wrong belief that something has to be perfect to get moving with it. I’ve tended to deal with perfectionism, and that can be a huge roadblock in the process of taking a leap of faith into your dreams and desires. I’ve learned that it’s best to just do it; step out. Prepare as much as you can, and change things along the way. There’s no way to make it perfect, especially ahead of time. It’s a journey and you get better over time. I decided to look at it like the stages of my children growing up. Right now, I’m in the newborn stage of blogging. A time where you have to take it slow and give yourself a lot of grace. It can feel a little awkward as you’re learning to navigate a new realm of things.

Contact Info:

• Website: Simplyrelevantlife.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/simply_relevant_life?igshid=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
• Other: [email protected]