When you’re a busy mom with a career, it may seem impossible to even stop for a chance to breathe, let alone practice self-care. You may not have time for a luxury vacation or a lush bubble bath, but those aren’t the only ways to practice self-care. Self-care, in its simplest terms, means taking care of yourself and providing your mind and body with what it needs to thrive. Self-care may mean putting on some moisturizer when your skin is dry. Other times, it may be scheduling a doctor’s appointment after experiencing frequent headaches. The first step to evaluating what self-care routine to use is to ask yourself what you want and need at any moment. When you’re constantly busy or in a rush, some quick self-care activities can encourage rest and relaxation.
Take Short Breaks
You may not believe you have time to take a break, but there must always be room for rest. Save that email reply for five minutes from now. Take a brief nature walk after your lunch. Take a few breaths for yourself before making a phone call. Even if your breaks are for a moment, pausing to breathe, close your eyes, and stretch can make a huge difference in a busy life. You can work breaks into your schedule by setting boundaries and watching the clock carefully.
Practice Boundaries
As a parent and career woman, you will often feel stretched thin. When your boss asks for extra work or your coworker asks you to cover their shift, you’ll feel obligated to say yes. Sometimes, additional work is normal, but you don’t need to go above and beyond constantly. Learn to say no by practicing with smaller things and working your way up. Ask for help and tell people you’re busy without offering excuses. You may work hard in your personal life and career but you don’t need to run yourself ragged. Learn how to set boundaries.
Create a Chore Schedule
It can be hard to create a work-life balance when you’re constantly doing chores and tasks. When you make a chore schedule for your family to see, you can delegate tasks to other family members to give yourself a break. Assign dishwashing to your partner for a few nights. Have your kids make their own breakfast with some simple cereals. Let your co-parent take the kids for a weeknight. Splitting up tasks gives you a break to relax or add more enrichment to your life.
Customize Your Space
Between juggling kids and a career, it may not feel like you have anything truly for yourself. While your family and your job are aspects of your life that provide benefits, they aren’t entirely for you. Personalizing your spaces is a simple way to make yourself feel cared for and represented. Paint the living room that color you’ve been eyeing for years. Add some worker decals to your workstation or hard hat. Dye your hair in a strip of pink. Whatever kind of personalized look or decoration you’re craving, do it. You can feel more comfortable at work or home when you tailor them to your tastes. Just make sure your customization won’t get you fired!
Meal Prep
When you come home from work and have to focus on dinner and parenting, you’ll feel even more drained. Consider meal prep to make dinner an easy and decided occasion. You can warm up leftovers or pre-prep ingredients to make cooking quick and easy. Meal prep is essential when you work late or feel worn out. Don’t be afraid to add takeout days when you can afford it.
Start a Journal or Diary
When you’re busy, you may not feel like you can express yourself or have appropriate emotional channels. A journal, blog, or diary is perfect for this purpose. Even if you don’t have time to journal, you can write a quick sentence or two about what you’re feeling or what emotions you’re experiencing. Writing can be therapeutic; a private journal space can help you express yourself unfiltered. You can even decorate your journal for a personalized touch.
Snack and Hydrate
Regardless of your hectic life, keeping yourself hydrated and fed can improve your physical and mental health. Purchase a delicious snack from the store to take to work or bring out when you’re feeling hungry. Stay hydrated with water or other healthy beverages in a favorite cup. You’ll feel more energetic and productive when you’re less hungry and thirsty.
Yoga and Stretching
You’re probably subjected to back pain, muscle strain, and fatigue when working and parenting. Yoga can help you maintain flexibility, ease joint pain, and relax during stressful days. A quick ten-minute yoga session in the morning and at night can make a huge difference in your physical and mental health. Alternatively, during the day, you can practice stretching different parts of the body to help you stay flexible and relaxed. Some stretches can be done while you go about your usual activities.
Go to Bed on Time
Staying up late may be tempting, as it’s likely the only time you get to yourself. You’ll want to practice self-discipline in this department. Staying up too late can affect your immune system, mental health, mood, skills, and productivity. There is a reason sleep deprivation is an effective form of torture! Go to bed around the same time each day and aim for at least seven to nine hours of sleep each night. Try to create a schedule that promotes a good night’s sleep. Self-care sometimes just means getting some decent sleep.