There are three things that you can easily do for yourself as a busy, stay-at-home parent. Some of us are prone to take on more than we can handle.
We may experience nagging worries or anxiety around accomplishing to-do lists.
Lastly, some of us are way too hard on ourselves as we try to get everything done in one day, plus being the best parent that we can.
We do a ton, it’s overwhelming at times, so here’s what you can do for yourself:
- Breath work. Deep, steady breathes. Exhausting for longer than your inhale can help. Allow tension and negativity to exit your body as you exhale. Practicing breathwork will connect you with your body.
- “You’re doing a great job.” Give yourself a compliment. Likely, you’re doing better than you think. Sometimes our minds tell us that we’re not doing enough or aren’t good enough.
- These are distorted, unrealistic thoughts. Reframe them to be more realistic. Positive thoughts are typically the outcome of reframing.
- You’re working hard, go easy on yourself and acknowledge the work you’ve done. Remember, we’ve all had those unproductive days due to things outside of our control.
- Take a break. If you’re overwhelmed, it’s okay to take a break or even be done tackling your to-do list for the day. You can pick up where you left off at tomorrow.
- Be intentional when working on the to-do list, but also when taking care of yourself. Be serious about taking care of yourself.
- Connect with your body and be aware of when you need something. As you’re connected with your body, notice if you’re dehydrated or hungry, for example. If you’re either of those things, put your task aside and take care of yourself.
- Personally, I’ll get working and taking care of my daughter, but will neglect myself. – For the sake of “relieving stress,” I’d rather get things accomplished on my list. You might do this, as well. It’s a huge no. Don’t do it. Don’t burn yourself out. It’s not worth it. It can be hard to recover from burnout.
- If your thought is something like, “I need to get these things done today,” challenge the thought. The word “need” is usually inaccurate. Do you actually need to do all of those things today?
Know when to practice these three things. Do them throughout the day. Connect with yourself, pay attention to how you’re physically feeling, and observe your “negative” emotions and thoughts. I’m using the word “negative” in quotation marks because that’s what we label them as. Choose to observe these “negative” emotions and thoughts because they’re telling you something.
Our bodies are providing us with feedback. Take care of yourself.
Examples of physical sensations to look out for
- Tense muscles
- Tense jaw
- Shaking
- Dehydration
- Hunger
- Shaking hands
- Leg shaking
- Shallow or holding your breath
Examples of emotions to look out for
- Irritability
- Upset
- Overwhelmed
- Anger
- Sadness
- Hopelessness
- Rushed
Here’s a good chart to help you identify emotions, download and print it. FEELINGS WHEEL
Examples of thoughts to pay attention to and reframe
- “I’m falling behind.”
- “Other parents will judge me.”
- “I’m not doing a good enough job.”
- “I’ll never finish this project.”
- “I’m a terrible parent.”
- “I’ll never reach my goals.”
- “I’m not cut out for this.”
- “The work never ends.”
Visit the article links that I provided to learn more.
If you need help:
- Finding balance at home between work, family and self-care
- Needing to talk about feeling like a crappy parent
- Needing to replace bad habits with helpful ones
- Learning how to reframe your thoughts
- Setting goals
- Managing worries and anxiety
- Being less hard on yourself
If those things describe you, imagine having a more balanced and calm day. Still feel accomplished without doing too much. Be a wonderful parent and take care of yourself.
Sounds great, right? Contact me through my website if you’d like to work together on these areas. I’ll get your message delivered to my email.
Take care,
Shannon
Promoting healing and life-long changes, so that you can live abundantly.
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