Life is busy. Life includes fulfilling responsibilities, heading to work, maintaining a home and (if you’re lucky enough to be a parent) raising children. They say that life is a rollercoaster and you’ve just got to ride it. The thing is, there’s only so long that anyone wants to ride a rollercoaster before they get off and throw up. You know I’m right. Life is one such rollercoaster that we cannot afford to get off and puke. You’ve got two choices: Ride it and embrace every twist, or puke into your lap. Most people prefer to ride the rollercoaster and lean into the dips. Others can’t keep their stomachs from churning. Mama, if that’s you, it’s time to stop.
Mothers do not have it easy today. Sure, it’s no walk in the park for dads, but moms have a lot to juggle and there seems to be a standard that every mother holds herself up to. When you’re balancing a career, a home, a relationship and a social life, life is busy. Add children in the mix, and it’s straight up insane. You get used to being so busy that there is a guilt that comes with allowing yourself 20 spare minutes. Taking those precious minutes to shower, nap, eat, read a chapter or workout can be nearly impossible. But Mom, you’ve got to take those minutes! Seriously. Take them.
Every single person in this life deserves some self-care; some ‘me time’. It’s not okay to consider your shower, your bubble bath or your nap as time for yourself. Those should be basic necessities, am I right? They should be things that you do for hygiene and exhaustion, not as ‘fun items’ that you do to feel like a functioning human. You should be able to take your exasperation and your stress and invest in things that make you happy as a person. Not as a Mom, as a wife or as a career-minded shark. Sahaja meditation relieves stress is one such example of what you should be investing in to give yourself a boost. Life may be a rollercoaster that is full of twists and turns, but it’s also something to be enjoyed. Taking time to breathe, to stop the whirlwind and to refocus your efforts is important. And this is time that you should be taking if you’re a mother.
Let the kids take their demands to dad. Let work be put on pause with a little PTO. Let housework wait for half an hour. Life is going to keep moving at warp speed. If you don’t look after yourself along the way, you’re going to be run ragged instead of enjoying the moments that are your life. If you feel like there’s no time for yourself, you need to be selfish and TAKE the time you need. Self-care is the number one thing that you should be paying attention to, because you can’t function as a human being without taking care of your own needs.
Take a moment and just stop. Breathe. Then, get back on the ride. It’s a wild one, but one that can be fun if you want it to be.
I really struggle with this concept! It came to a breaking point recently and I finally bought myself a daily planner so that I could schedule out my days better to make sure I am having time to do whatever it is that I want to do for myself. Today was actually my first day of doing that, and I feel so much less stressed out. When the planner says it’s time to relax, it’s time to relax! No exceptions. Treating it like an appointment.