As a mom, I often put my needs on hold. I put my kids and husband before myself, and let me state for the record, I love my family and have no regrets giving them all that I give them. However, I have learned that I can’t be all that my family needs me to be if I don’t take care of myself. My panic/anxiety attacks got so bad in 2018 that I thought I was having heart trouble and my blood pressure was too high. This was definitely a wake-up call for me. How could I take care of my family if I wasn’t around to do so? I needed to take care of myself. I know that I can’t be the only mom out there that feels this way. Here are 5 Mommy Self-Care Tips for The New Year.

“You are in a much better position to serve others when your basic needs are met and your “tank is full” -Michael Hyatt

5 Mommy Self-Care Tips for The New Year

Stay Plugged Into Yourself

As a mom it is super easy to lose yourself in the day to day grind, sometimes you don’t even realize it. Playing taxi driver, washing clothes, cooking dinner, paying bills, cleaning the house, etc…to name just a few. I know from experience that sometimes you have to write “shower” into your plans. Crazy, I know! But my fellow Mama’s get it and are probably bobbing their heads up and down right about now. Before you know it, a year or five, have flown by and you don’t even recognize yourself in the mirror. Ways to stay connected?

• Journal
• Meditate
• Quiet Time
• Read
• Pursue your hobbies
• Draw
• Paint

Whatever keeps you centered and helps you come back to yourself and remember who you are.

Get Moving

This one is pretty straightforward. Exercising is key to our health (mind and body).  You can find many creative ways to get your body moving. For me, I love playing with my boys. They are 6 and 3. They don’t sit still for long. We like to do dance workout videos from youtube.com. We also have daily dance parties in our kitchen. My oldest will ask Alexa to play “dance songs” and we just start dancing around the kitchen. I love to do yoga. In fact, yoga is one of the things that really helped me last year when I was struggling with panic attacks and high blood pressure. Different ways to get moving:

• Outdoor yoga class
• Spin class (never tried this, but it sounds fun)
• Rollerblading
• Indoor rock climbing
• Dance classes
• Fun workout videos on youtube.com

Anything you can do to get yourself moving. Since I am a stay at home mom, I try to find activities that I can do with my boys. It gets them to moving and it is something we can do together that is fun (and healthy!)

Eat Healthy and Drink Lots of Water

I am not going to tell you to go full out diet crazed! However, I am going to share what I know has worked for me. I have lost 19 pounds since August and I have only changed a few things about my diet. I have cut out most fried foods, I eat A LOT of fresh fruits and vegetables. My favorite breakfast is fresh mango, blueberries, and one scrambled egg (no salt).

I have cut out eating fast foods and stopped drinking sodas. No joke. I dropped 4 pounds in two weeks just from cutting out my sodas. I started drinking water, constantly. Something that works great for me is to keep one of those Yeti cups in the fridge with ice and water. The Yeti cups keep your drink cold for like 6-8 hours. I can’t stand drinking warm water. I have to have my water cold so this really helped me out.

“Lighten up on yourself. No one is perfect. Gently accept your humanness.” -Deborah Day

Put Sleep and Personal Medical Appointment on Your To-Do List

You wouldn’t dream of ever missing your children’s annual checkups so why should you miss yours? Schedule your annual exams, any testing that needs done, eye exams, skin exams, pap smears, flu shots, anything that needs to be taken care of for yourself. Like I said earlier, you can’t take care of your family if you aren’t around. So many health issues can be avoided if found earlier.

It has been proven that people that consistently get less than 6 hours of sleep a night show adverse health consequences. Sleep deprivation is not a joke. Lack of sleep can lead to depression, weight gain, and impaired mental compacity. Your body needs sleep to function on all cylinders.

Stay Connected To Others (Especially Your Spouse)

Earlier we talked about how important it is to stay plugged into yourself and to remember who you are outside of the day to day chaos. It is also important to keep the connections with your fellow adults. Try to make date nights a must with your spouse. Maybe once or twice a month? Coffee dates with friends and girl weekend shopping days. I know one thing that has really helped me with my sanity is playdates. I meet up with a few friends and their kids and we eat and let the kids play. The kids get to run off some energy and I get to have an ADULT CONVERSATION!!  I know there are days where I don’t get to have an actual conversation with another adult.

“When the well’s dry, we know the worth of water” -Benjamin Franklin

Good luck, Mamas!! I hope you find these 5 Mommy Self-Care Tips for The New Year inspiring. Remember you are worthy! Take care of yourself so you can love your family in a healthy way. 

“But those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” Isaiah 40:31