From Overwhelmed to Empowered: Balancing Motherhood and Personal Well-Being

This year has been full of so many changes for me and learning to re-balance my life has been very challenging. Working to survive each day has caused me to lack in so many areas of my life that are normally very important to me such as my mental, physical, and spiritual health.

As I'm working to get back into a healthy routine it's made me think about how important it is for our children to see us pull ourselves together after defeat and get on with our lives. They literally look to us for EVERYTHING! How to manage their big feelings, how to deal with conflict, and even how to wipe their own butts! It's so important that we are honest with our children, but also show them that there will always be better days.

Managing motherhood while caring for yourself can be tough, but YOU CAN DO TOUGH THINGS!

I curated a list of some tips that can help you on your journey of motherhood and taking care of yourself. Every tip may not be for you but be sure to read through each one because you never know what gems you may run across.

Emotionally

1. Express Your Feelings: Please stop bottling up your feelings. It's been scientifically proven that it's literally not good for your health! Talk to someone about your emotions whether it's a therapist, a trusted friend, or a family member.

2. Journaling: Another great way to process and understand your feelings is by writing them down. Try journaling for even 5 minutes a day and I promise you'll notice a difference.

3. Self-Compassion: Practice being kind and speaking positivity over yourself. Affirmations are a good way to start this practice.

Spiritually

1. Set Aside Quiet Time: Dedicate a few minutes each day for meditation, prayer, or reflection. Bonus points if you can do it first thing in the morning for a great start to your day.

2. Join a Community: Engage with a religious community or like-minded group to lean on for support and shared experiences. (BUT be sure you aren't building relationships off trauma-bonding alone)

Financially

1. Budgeting: Creating a budget for you and your family can help keep track of your income and help you not overspend.

2. Savings Plan: Having a savings account is so important for being prepared for emergencies and meeting financial goals. If you don't have one already, open up a HYSA (high-yield savings account) to build interest while you save with no extra effort. If you need a recommendation I got you!

3. Financial Education: Be sure to educate yourself about personal finance through books, courses, or financial advisors. This is so important for our children's future as they aren't even taught how to balance a checkbook in school! I signed up on this website [for free] and when I tell you I have been fed so much helpful information about financial literacy it's unreal. Thank me later!

Physically

1. Regular Exercise: Okay, you knew it was coming! But the truth is you CAN NOT live a long, healthy life without regular exercise. And the beauty of it all is that you don't have to be a gym rat if that's not authentic to who you are. You can try cycling, HIIT, yoga, and if all else fails walking regularly will do wonders for your health in the long run.

2. Healthy Eating: A bad diet will kill you quicker than a natural disaster! Again you don't have to juice greens for a living if that's not who you are but a balanced diet will help you to look and feel better, especially as you get older.

3. Adequate Rest: A new study showed that most women need more than, the recommended, 7-8 hours of sleep a night. Listen to your body and take the adequate rest you need before the rest takes you!

Extra Tips For Life

1. Set Boundaries: Establish boundaries to protect your time and energy. This vital life tip will help you in every stage of your journey. If you've never had boundaries before now is the time to establish them. It will be difficult, people will give you pushback, and you may even lose friends. Do it anyway.

2. Seek Support: Don’t hesitate to ask your village for help when you need it.

3. Celebrate Small Wins: Acknowledge and celebrate your achievements, no matter how small they may seem. Every day will not consist of a huge accomplishment like purchasing a home or paying off a large debt. Make sure you are acknowledging the small wins as well because those daily deposits are what make the big accomplishments possible.

I hope this information was helpful for moms (and women in general). If you have any more tips to add be sure to leave a comment below.

You got this!