Why Self Care Is Important For Mums

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While not a statistically validated opinion, it appears to me that the amount of support a mum gets at home is directly correlated to the amount of her self-care. More support at home equals more self-care opportunities and vice versa. This can be a hard reality for mums facing limited support in their network. This might be you. If so, read on.


Let me tell you a story. Today the odds were against me. A few days ago the dreaded gastro bug not only knocked at our house, it practically tore it down. Miss Seven, Miss Five, and Master Two then shared the lovely germ with me and we all started singing "oh please let this end' in harmony. Fast forward to today and my daughters were due to have their Easter Hat Parade at school. The excitement around Miss Five's first parade was palpable and Miss Seven was looking forward to her first parade with her sibling. Master Two just loves a good event so he was pretty excited but that was because he was breathing.

And then it happened......

Miss Seven, ten mins out from the time we needed to depart for school, projectile vomits all over her uniform, the carpet, and the lounge. Mummy launches into support and clean-up services, while Miss Five starts crying. She is worried we will miss the 2 pm Hat Parade and her life will most certainly be ruined. At this time, Master Two sneaks from the room to commence the destruction of the Easter Hats we all spent hours constructing last night. Master Two isn't small in anything he does. He plays a big game and he gets results. Mummy senses the demolition taking place and is too late to save the hats. This causes Miss Five to scream as she will never stop. All is going well until the elderly dog also decides that it's time to vomit up her breakfast and now everything is going perfectly to plan! Miss Seven is now in the shower, there is no hope of getting to school on time, Mummy is cuddling Miss Five, the hats are drying from a rough attempt at recovery, the elderly dog wanders off as if nothing has happened and the doorbell rings as Star Track want a signature on a parcel. Oh, how pleasant.

Mummy's head is pounding as she isn't 100% recovered from the illness, there is now another full load of IRKY washing awaiting my assistance, Miss Five's lunchbox looks like it was prepared by a mad woman, and Master Two does a nappy. Mummy then drives Miss Five to school with Miss Seven asleep in the car and Master Two clapping about his fantastic morning. Mummy looks in the mirror and sees an 82-year-old woman looking back at her. Oh, I was looking fabulous!

Now this tale is not told in an attempt to make you feel sorry for me. It is told to exhibit that sometimes the odds are just against us and that is that. We are not failing. We are not bad mothers. We are not required to be more or improve or criticise ourselves. We are simply faced with too many challenges for the number of hands available. During these times it is easy to let the emotions of anger, fear, disappointment and exhaustion overwhelm us. It can also be easy to feel we are not looking after ourselves because quite frankly, we seem to come last on the list.

Self-care is critical to surviving the marathon of motherhood. Meditation, a great coffee, a walk, a massage, time with a friend, a fresh set of nails, and the list goes on, is much more than a treat. It is critical to push past those days when the odds are just against us. There is simply no debating that each one of us, as mothers, faces a unique journey, yet we all face hardships. This is just a brutal fact. There is no perfect ride and no perfect mother. Yet, there can be perfect moments. And there can be imperfect moments. Let's try and increase those perfect moments to help us when those odds are simply not going our way. May today be your day to increase your self-care.

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