14 Ways to be a More Relaxed Mom in a Hectic World
Like many of you, becoming a relaxed mom didn’t come naturally to me. In our busy life, I work and play hard, prefer order over chaos, and I struggle to disconnect from the never-ending tasks around me. Juggling schedules and meeting everyone’s expectations is overwhelming as a mother. Motherhood is undeniably exhausting; children, by their nature, bring chaos, leaving you cleaning up one mess only to discover another elsewhere in your home.
For me, there’s a constant battle between my innate nature and the gentle, nurturing mother I aspire to be. There are moments I feel like yelling, but I know deep down that frequent outbursts can harm my kids.
14 WAYS TO BE A MORE RELAXED Mom
In my pursuit of becoming a more peaceful mother, I choose to embrace being perfectly imperfect and strive each day to be a calmer version of myself with my children. While it’s not always easy and I’m not always successful, working toward becoming a more relaxed mom is worth the effort. In truth, I know I’m getting a little better every day, even if the progress is slow. Along my journey, I’ve picked up some helpful tips to be a more relaxed and peaceful mom.
Build Self-Care into your life
1). Take time for yourself regularly. Prioritize your own self-care by including it in your calendar. During the day, take short breaks, exercise, indulge in a hobby, or find a quiet moment whenever you can. It’s important that you to have these moments to fill your cup so you can fill the cups of your little ones!
2). Set realistic expectations for yourself. While I am all about productivity, systems, and organization in my household since having children, I’ve also come to appreciate that it’s important to let some things go and simply enjoy the time with my family. Keeping everything in balance also means allowing things to fall out of balance for temporary periods of time.
3). Take time to just breathe. While mothers are incredibly productive and efficient human beings, we are not superhuman. Remember to take a moment to sit down and take a breather.
take care of your Health
4). Be mindful of your diet. Strive to eat healthy foods, eat protein, take supplements, limit processed sugar, and drink lots of water. Your body will feel much better if you take care of your health. Plus, you’ll have more energy to keep up with your children.
5). Make time for exercise. The benefits of daily exercise are endless and you’ll never regret caring for your body through exercise. For starters, exercise helps relieve stress, assists with weight management, makes you physically feel better, and increases your endorins.
6). Put your electronic devices away for your mental health. We all carry a load of stress in our cell phones, devices, computers, and tablets – email, social media, and notifications galore distract our attention away from our families. Even though we love to feel connected all of the time, it takes a toll on everyone’s mental health. Instead, take time to put the phone away every day and just be with your family.
Build Routines and tweak them
7). Get up before your children. I know this one is difficult, but having even a few minutes to yourself in your morning routine is life-changing. Having time to wake up before reacting to the events of the day will absolutely help you be a more relaxed mom.
8). Have an evening routine. Find a routine that sets you and your family up for a restful evening and for a successful morning. Identify a few things you can do each night to make your morning routine with your children run smoothly each day. A calmer morning with your children makes for a much better day for everyone!
9). Simplify your schedule. Learn to prioritize what is important to your family and make your calendar reflect those priorities. In today’s world, we are pulled in a lot of different directions. We have an abundance of opportunity and the danger of overscheduling is an easy trap to fall into.
In fact, this past semester, I overscheduled us and we were exhausted. But I learned an important lesson about setting priorities. If you and your family are feeling overwhelmed by your calendar, start having conversations around what your highest priorities are. Start taking things off your calendar that aren’t as important as you once thought. While these may be difficult conversations to have, especially with your children, everyone will learn a valuable lesson from them.
Include your family in chores
10). Include your child in your chores and projects. Children naturally want to help and be a part of your grown-up world. Instead of fighting it, allow your child to participate. Encourage them to help you with chores and tag along with you on errands. When you include your child, accept that things may move more slowly or not be done perfectly, but that’s okay.
For example, when I allow my children to help me put away the laundry, my inner Marie Kondo has to take a backseat. I may cringe at the wrinkly clothes in their drawers later, but the time spent with my kids is incredibly important; and honestly, done is better than perfect anyway.
11). Learn to delegate. Remember, you don’t have to do it all alone. Ask for help from your partner or older children, or consider hiring a cleaning service to help you once or twice per month. Learning to delegate tasks in a respectful way is a powerful skill, both in and outside the home. While I do my best to keep up with the household chores, I frequently ask my husband or children to help me keep things in order.
Learn and teach Life Skills
12). Become a pro at flexibility, adaptability, and resilience. Remember, not everything will go according to your initial plans. In fact, with children, expect the plan to go awry and accept it as part of the journey. With our world changing at an increasing pace every day, adaptability, flexibility, and resilience are some of the best life skills we can teach our children.
13). Actively work to manage your emotions. For most of us, we react to our children in similar patterns to how our parents reacted to us. Reflect on how your own upbringing affects your reactions to your children. Start by paying attention to your body and becoming aware of your triggers. The first step to controlling your emotions is awareness. When you begin to feel triggered by your child’s behavior, pause and reflect on your best response. In some cases, you may be able to walk away and address the issue once you’ve calmed down. The more you practice emotional awareness and pausing before reacting, the easier it will be to control your emotions.
Build Connection with your family
14). When in doubt, prioritize connection over chores, tasks, and busy schedules. Remember, the most important thing to your child is you. Make connecting with them daily your top priority, no matter what. Aim for giving each of your individual children at least 20 minutes of your undivided attention every day. By building connection and understanding in your family, you will learn to navigate challenges with more patience and empathy.
Becoming a more relaxed mom: conclusion
Getting through the craziness of motherhood without losing your sanity is challenging. However, I’ve discovered these effective strategies to cultivate a calmer approach to parenting. Prioritizing daily self-care, establishing routines and systems, and nurturing your own health and well-being are invaluable steps toward achieving a peaceful balance. Remember that even in the midst of the ups and downs, finding joy in the journey is key to thriving as a parent.
Save this post for later! Click here to save to your Pinterest Account! Follow us for more Mom Life content!
