(ThySistas.com) You’re a Mom who takes her responsibility to your kids darned seriously. You thought long and hard before becoming a parent. From the moment you found out you were pregnant you steeled yourself for the challenges ahead. You loved and cared for your little ones before they were brought kicking and screaming into the world. And as they’ve grown they’ve presented different challenges for you over the years. Yet, as their needs changed and their personalities emerged, you rose with aplomb to every challenge of motherhood.
Your friends don’t know how you do it. In fact, often you amaze even yourself as you spin the plates of work, relationships and family with such deftness and grace. Nonetheless, as admirable as your dedication to parenthood is, diligent Moms should take care that their care for their kids doesn’t come at the expense of their self-care.
Attach your own oxygen mask before attempting to help your children with theirs
If you’ve ever flown on a plane, you’re likely familiar with the above sentiment (or a version of it) as part of the cabin crew’s safety demonstration. It ensures that, in the event of a crisis, parents should ensure that their own needs are met in order to effectively attend to their kids’. It’s a pretty neat metaphor for the importance of self-care for parents. How can we be expected to help our kids get the urgent care they need in a time of crisis if we can barely keep it together ourselves? While those hard-wired maternal instincts will carry you far, Moms still owe it to their kids and themselves to take care of their mental and physical wellbeing.
Malnourished, dehydrated, fatigued or sick Moms can’t be expected to give the same standard of care as happy or healthy Moms. With that in mind, here are some key ways in which all Moms need to take care of themselves…
Sleep
All Moms find themselves losing sleep from time to time. Nonetheless, it’s essential for even the busiest parents to get a minimum of 7-8 hours of sleep every night. While you’re asleep your body carries out all the maintenance and repairs that our bodies need to stay healthy, as well as keeping our minds feeling sharp, rested and responsive.
What they say about early to bed and early to rise? That’s good advice for everyone!
Stop, take a second and slow down
Life moves at such a brisk pace these days that simply keeping your head above water can be extremely stressful. Take a moment free of sensory input, free of smartphones and other devices to simply stop, breathe and smell the metaphorical roses.
Just 5 minutes of mindfulness meditation every day can be a colossal boon to busy Moms.
Nutrition is important for you too, you know!
Nutrition isn’t just about looking slim and gorgeous. It’s also about giving your body and brain the peak nutrition it needs to function optimally. So many Moms are extremely diligent when it comes to their kids’ nutrition yet find themselves eating in bites as they dash hurriedly from one place to another.
Exercise in the right way for the right reasons
Finally, it’s important to find the right form of exercise for you. Something that you do for the right reasons. Not to labor under the yoke of someone else’s standard of beauty but to help you relax, let off steam, meet new people and get that surge of stress-busting endorphins which make you better able to handle the pressure of parenthood with grace!
Staff Writer; Natasha Parker