From the moment we have children, our lives can feel as though they’re turned upside down. In the early days, it’s hard to even find time for a shower, never mind an evening out with friends. Self care can quickly go down the list of priorities.
This includes both the basics of sleep and food, as well as doing things that we enjoy, like settling down with a great film, getting exercise and seeing friends.
It can be really easy to fall into the trap of not finding time for yourself, but it is incredibly important. Here are my top 3 reasons why.
1. It’s important for your physical and mental wellbeing
If we don’t get enough sleep or food, we will simply run ourselves into the ground physically. Our bodies can put up with this for a while, but in the end they rebel. We often end up with colds at Christmas because we’re exhausted, and while this isn’t usually related to lacking food it’s often due to a lack of sleep! For our mental wellbeing it’s so important to do things we love, and we’ve really seen in this past year how important connection with others is. It’s not a luxury to take time to see friends, it’s essential for us all.
2. Without it, you can’t do anything for others
If you find it hard to put yourself first sometimes, this is a key point to remember. If you’re exhausted, you won’t be able to look after anyone else, because you either won’t have the energy, or you’ll have caught something and your immune system will be too low to fight it. Your children don’t want an exhausted parent, they want one who’s got some energy, so looking after yourself is definitely NOT something to feel guilty about.
3. You’ll start to resent others
If you’re always putting other people first, and never make any time to look after yourself, you’ll just end up resenting them. Feeling cross and irritable is no fun at all, and it’s not a situation any of us want to be in. If you feel as though you can do activities you enjoy, you’ll be much happier to do things for others and enjoy spending time with them. Even ten minutes with a cup of tea and a good book makes a difference.
Self care is essential.
So, this Mother’s Day weekend, and every day, make sure you can do something you really love, and enjoy some time for you. IF you’d like help with creating more time for you, book a free call with me here to see how I could help.
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