Self Care for Stay at Home Moms
I think it is a big misconception that stay-at-home moms have all of this luxury and freedom, and I think for a while I even believed it myself, probably before my 2nd kiddo came along. However, some of the most stressful moments I’ve had have been here at home with my kids. I do work from home as well, so that is another giant beast. I don’t use any childcare, for now, so it is me and them all day, everyday, while I do all of my work, too. Even without all of the extras, just being here with my children all day can be stressful. I feel guilty about it, and feel guilty for wanting to send them to preschool, like, yesterday. I’m sure I am not the ONLY mom out there experiencing this, so I thought I would share some tips for self care for stay at home moms. These are things I’ve found that help me a whole lot when it comes to being at home with my kids.
First and foremost, I’m sure you will see this tip at the top of any list of advice for stay-at-home moms, but that’s because it works. The BIGGEST thing I can do for myself is to get up in the morning, get dressed, and maybe even put makeup on and jewelry, too. These things make me feel human and like I am not just a slave to these little people all day. Plus, this makes it really easy if I spontaneously decide to take a trip and get out of the house or have someone over! I splurged on this Naked 3 eyeshadow pallette, technically it was a Christmas gift, but it really helps me want to put on makeup when I have nice makeup to put on. I got myself one of these makeup mirrors from Target and so it’s really nice to take that time for me in the morning to do this.
Depending on the age of your little ones, you can bring them into the bathroom with you with some toys, or if worse comes to worse, get ready during their nap time.
Next, I really recommend making sleep a priority, this may sound crazy if you have a new baby, or even a toddler who doesn’t sleep well. However, I think it really does make a huge difference for me and my well being during the day. Don’t feel guilty for naps! I try not to get in the habit of taking one everyday, but if I do have a day where I am really exhausted, I try to take one when my baby does and not feel guilty for it at all.
Find yourself a hobby that is just for you. For me, that’s planning. It still kind of revolves around my children, but the creative aspect of planning does not. So, that’s really fun for me and it’s a great creative outlet that is also functional and helping me stay organized.
Take a few minutes for yourself each day. I don’t get to do this everyday, but a couple of nights a week after my little ones are in bed, I try to relax and take a bath with these Dr. Teals epsom salts. They are my absolute favorite, and this is a great way that I’ve found to just reset.
Another thing that I’ve found that can turn our whole day around is getting outside. This one is good for you and for your kids, because fresh air makes everyone better, and the time outside can let your kiddos burn off some of that energy as well. If you can’t get outside, we also like to open all of our windows and the blinds and let the sunshine come in to us, too. I really love doing this if I am stuck inside cleaning or something like that. It makes it less of a chore and it is also kind of motivating for me, too.
Finally, whenever I find myself having a really bad day, I can always make things a little better by forgetting about everything else and just laughing with my kids. If everything else has to wait, that’s fine. Sometimes that’s what we really need is to just take time to enjoy our kids.
So, those are my tips for self care for stay-at-home moms. I hope that you found a tip that you can use with your family so that you can break out of a bad day, or a series of bad days. They definitely happen. Now I’d like to hear from you guys. Stay at home mom or working mom, tell me in the comments what things you do to take care of YOU!
P.S… if you feel like you are struggling as a mama, I really encourage you to check out this book by Rachel Macy Stafford, called Only Love Today. I am about halfway through it, and it is so amazing. I was going through a long series of bad days and I feel like this book has been really transformational to my life. I will be doing a full review and sharing more about it soon, but I really wanted to share it with my fellow mamas out there who may be experiencing the same things I have. <3
