Hey mama, I feel your pain. I know you’re busy. That’s why I created this list of EASY self care strategies busy moms can add to their lives.
Maybe you’re working at home, outside of the home, running a business, or chasing your kids around all day. Maybe you’re trying to do some magical mixture of all these things. If you’re like me, there are days when it is completely overwhelming and you wonder: Is it even OK for me to take a time out?
Well, first off, let me say this, “YES IT IS!”
We all need a time out. We all need to care for our emotional, mental, and physical selves. AND we all deserve self-care and, honestly, our families deserve for us to take care of ourselves, too. So even if you won’t do it for yourself, do it for them.
Now that we got the hard part out of the way (giving yourself permission to practice self-care in the first place), let’s look at some easy ways you can add self-care to your busy schedule.
Saying NO is the easiest way for moms to practice self care
OK, give me just one minute to explain this before you assume I don’t know what I’m talking about. Because TRUST ME I would think I didn’t know what I was talking about, too, after reading that headline. Saying “no” is literally one of the hardest things for a lot of us to do. It’s like it gets stuck in our throats as we try to push it up EVEN THOUGH we really can’t take on another task.
Maybe it’s the messages we receive as young girls from our mothers. Maybe it’s society. A lot of us have been influenced by the belief that a good woman MUST sacrifice for those around her. Many of us believe that the only way to be a good parent is to sacrifice everything for our kids. And, a lot of us with baggage believe that we need to please people to make them like us. (But, really, you’re better off if some people don’t like you. Especially if they’re just out to get something from you).
LEARNING to say no can be like dragging yourself through a waist-high mud pit filled with sand monsters from Beetlejuice. But once you get the hang of it – once you face the fear of not being liked, appreciated, valued, or “enough” – you’ll find that saying no frees up MORE TIME for you to practice self-care AND give your best version of yourself to the causes that mean most to you.
Did you know journalling can be self-care?
When done with a certain intention journaling can be an excellent source of self-care. Even if all you’re doing is dumping your negative thoughts onto paper so you can sort out your emotions you’ve done something positive – you didn’t hold them in, bottle them up, push them down, and grit your teeth through the rest of your day.
You can even use your journal to plan, and dream, remember what you’re grateful for, and get to know yourself better. Click here for a post with self-discovery journal prompts!
Journaling is one way many empowered women care for their mental health. Click here to read about 6 other great ways to practice mental health care as self-care.
Busy moms, it’s time to RELAX with some good self care
If you’ve looked into self-care before or heard all the buzz around it in recent years this image is probably similar to those you’ve seen a thousand times – a woman in a bathtub. Because most of what we hear is that self-care is relaxing. Baths, pedicures, facials, etc.
I’ll be the first to say that this is not ALL self-care is, but relaxation is an important part of caring for your physical self.
Practice self-care by learning to love your body
You may not have thought about body confidence (or even body neutrality) as being a form of self-care but it is.
Easy ways for busy moms to learn to love their bodies
- Use your journal to write down ONE reason a day that you can love your body (the things it does for you, the things it’s been through, etc.)
- Listen to podcasts that reinforce body positivity
- Use post-it notes to remind yourself of the reasons you listed in your journal
- Honestly ask other people what they think about your body – you might be surprised by their responses
- Ask other people how they feel about THEIR bodies – you might be surprised how many people feel the same about their bodies.
Cultivate a nurturing love for yourself with our FREE 28-day self-care course
Delivered to your inbox, this course lets you work at your own pace while also helping keep you on track with your self-care. And we’re here each step of the way via email ❤️
