 Self-care is all the rage these days. The phrase is self-explanatory, but sometimes the culture surrounding it can be a little more than misleading. Here are a few parenting tips on how to (or how not to) care for yourself so that you can be the best parent and raise happy and healthy kids. Do Eat Well
All of our bodies need certain things to survive. If you want to join a self-care movement make sure that the food you're putting in your body is healthy and providing you with the energy you need to wake up and do it all again tomorrow. Do Exercise Regularly This looks different for everyone. You may be a marathon runner or just a casual walker. Maybe you thrive in high-intensity exercises like CrossFit or spin classes, or maybe you like a slow swim in the pool at your local YMCA. It doesn’t matter what you choose to do, as long as you’re exercising vigorously enough to elevate your heart rate several times per week. Do Sleep When the kids are finally in bed it can be tempting to lay around scrolling through social media all hours of the night. But what you really need is to go to sleep. Getting enough sleep at night is not only critical to maintaining your physical health, but it’s critical to helping you maintain a calm and positive attitude with your children. So put down your phone, turn out the lights, and get some much-needed shut-eye. Do Invest In Relationships You spend lots of time helping your children cultivate healthy relationships with their siblings and their friends at school, but how much time are you spending investing in relationship with your own friends, or even your spouse. Be intentional about carving out time to really connect with the people you love most? And what’s better than parenting tips that encourage you to spend more time with your friends? Don’t Confuse Self Care And Over-Indulgence Were not here to say there's anything wrong with enjoying a glass of wine, a decadent dessert, or a night of Netflix with your spouse. However, those things should not be confused with self-care. A glass or two of wine isn’t the problem, it’s when that habit makes it difficult for you to wake up rested and energized in the morning that it falls outside the self-care category. Don’t Think You’re Above It Admitting that you need to care for yourself isn’t a weakness, and there's nothing wrong with reaching out to your spouse, friends, or family to ask for help. When you take better care of yourself, you’ll be healthier and stronger and better able to care for your children. There’s nothing you want more than to be a great parent to your kids. And the best way for you to achieve that is to learn to take care of yourself. Self-care is a habit, so don’t worry about perfecting it all at once. Practice these habits every day and see how much it changes your life. For more parenting tips follow along on our blog, and contact us today to learn more about joining the St. Barnabas School family. |