Yesterday was National Mental Health day, and to celebrate I gave myself a day away from social media. To be honest, I did post a birthday shout out for my sister in law, but I spent majority of the day, away from social media.. I believe that your mental health is the most important part of your wellness routine, even above nutrition and exercise.
Our thoughts guide how we view our world and ourselves. Thus, our mental health shapes who we are and will be come. I remember during the first 6 months of RJ's life trying to navigate through postpartum and anxiety. I think the new role as mom in the mist of a pandemic made my thoughts and feelings more negative than ever before. While things have significantly improved , one thing that has really helped me improve my mental was making time for myself, daily.
Daily, sounds like a lot I know. I mean most new moms and working moms feel as though they barely have time do the bare minimum weekly, so daily can feel overwhelming. But, its necessary and easier than we are made to believe.
Here are 3 tips I have for making time for yourself:
Be honest about your needs from friends and family
I remember after RJ was born feeling like I all of a sudden needed to be an amazing wife, awesome chef and a coordinated mom. I was burnt out before RJ could even sit up on his o
wn. I felt frustrated with Rich because while I was struggling, he didn't automatically come to my beck and call and give me space or time for myself. But what I learned is that by being honest and telling him how the lack of time for myself made me feel angry/sad/upset, I was opening the door for us to talk about scheduling time for ourselves, a time where we didn't have to wear the hat of wife/mother/husband/dad.
Physically schedule the time on your calendar-- treat it like a DAILY requirement
So creating this me time cannot just end with you voicing that you need time to yourself, you have to put action behind it. I'll be honest, I've only recently gotten good at this. Rich and I currently have set days where we give ourselves 45 min to do what's best for us. These activities can be everything or anything from walks, exercising, mediating or even random walks around target. To hold ourselves accountable we place it on our calendar as an "to do" item. Thus, each time I look at my phone it serves a reminder.
Prep the time out
Because self-care is an important time, its helpful if you get rid of any challenges/hurdles
that may prevent you from actually completing this time. For myself, this means I may have to meal prep on Sunday so I can have extra time during the week to complete my "me time" or bring my workout clothes with me to work so when I leave I can head straight to the gym. If you aren't able to do something for yourself during the day, maybe you get baby to bed a few minutes earlier so you can have that moment to rejuvenate and not have to be in charge of anyone else but yourself.
"Me time" and "self care" are such buzz words nowadays with many people offering ideas for the various things you can do, but often times the hardest part is just "doing it".