Why busy mum’s need self-care habits
Hello Everybody,
I hope you have had a good week. The observant amongst you may have noticed that there was no meal plan last week. My apologies for this.
My Reason? – I’ve been working for 2½ weeks on a moderately physical work project. Unfortunately, this work seems to have really aggravated my arthritis and I’ve been feeling pretty poorly.
Now, this isn’t a ‘please feel sorry for me’ type of post. The reason I want to share this story with you is because as mothers we often take it upon ourselves to keep ‘soldiering’ on. I think most mothers feel guilty if they aren’t giving 100% to their families. We often fail to provide ourselves with some self-care, because we feel we are too busy. Why should we have time off when there is always so much stuff to get done? But, self-care is really important as it gives our minds and bodies time for recovery and repair.
Now, I know some mums are pretty good at pencilling in time out in their diaries for spa days, girls weekends or shopping trips. I don’t know if you are the same, but I find it really hard to totally relax on these sort of trips – I can’t stop worrying whether X or Y child has done their homework, has their games kit etc. Then there’s all the preparations before you go, which can just add to your levels of stress and tiredness.
So, over the years I’ve slowly been building up little pockets of self-care in my daily routine. These encompass the usual things of trying to eat healthily for 80% of the time, getting some exercise in (mainly walking and yoga) and trying to get as much sleep as I can!.
But sometimes, when I hit particularly busy times, feel unwell or overly stressed, these routines aren’t enough. When we hit the wall, it’s important to listen to our bodies and make big adjustments to our routine and just REST.
These are my tips for helping to get through these tricky times:-
- Try to get enough sleep and generally rest. Having a duvet day with the kids and watching movies does you good and the kids will love having your undivided attention.
- Have a break from social media – sorry that’s why there was no meal plan last week!
- Ask for help from friends and family. Being a martyr doesn’t help you to recover and in the long term it can jeopardise your overall health.
- Have a bit of quiet time – a long, hot bubbly bath is a good spot for this.
- Have takeaway or simple meals and don’t feel guilty about it.
- Listen to your body and don’t do exercise if you really don’t feel up to it. Again, your body will gain far greater benefit from resting than being stressed from over working.
Most importantly, when you are in need of rest and recuperation, don’t get bogged down by thoughts that your energy levels won’t return – they will, but only if you give yourself some self-care. The cliché quotes of “how can you fill other’s cup if your cup is empty” and “put your oxygen mask on first, before helping others” are true. By looking after yourself you can truly be there for your family when they need you the most.
Here’s this week’s meal plan:-
- Roast pork loin with bacon and sage stuffing, roast potatoes and vegies
- Salmon and pea quiche with salad
- Chicken stroganoff and rice
- Ginger poached tuna (or any fish) with noodles or rice
- Cottage pie
- Creamy tarragon chicken, roast garlic new potatoes and green vegies
- Mexican pork stir fry
I hope you all have a super Easter Break. Don’t forget to make time for some self-care this week.
Let me know on the New Leaf facebook page what self-care habits you incorporate in your daily routine.
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