Motherhood is hard work. It’s a constant job. It’s so easy to neglect yourself or become overwhelmed. When you stop taking care of yourself, your capacity to take care of your child is affected and your enjoyment of motherhood is affected.
My Best Advice: Take Care of Yourself
As an Pediatric hospitalist the majority of my work involves taking care of babies in two distinct hospitals. I’ve been sending mothers and their babies home for fifteen years since. After watching them and going through motherhood I was wondering what you consider my ” best advice for new moms ever” comprise?
It’s something women try to accomplish throughout pregnancy, but cease when they hear the first crying. It’s something that can have a ripple effect over the course of decades. It’s not expensive, yet it can save the world millions. It’s extremely difficult to achieve in the present, yet is important.
What is my “best advice for new moms ever”? Take good care of yourself. This is it, just four simple words.
If you are pregnant, it’s obvious the reason why this particular concept is so important.
The baby that is developing inside of your body is directly affected the things you eat, drink , and do.
-
When smoke, smoke your baby, it gets exposed and doesn’t develop similarly.
-
If you’re chronically the body’s receptive hormones trigger a series of negative impacts on your child.
-
If you take your food in a poor way your baby could be at risk of slow growth.
Once the baby is no longer component of you, it’s easy to forget the tight relationship between how you look after yourself as well as how you look after your baby’s health.
It Isn’t Selfish to Take Time to Exercise!
A mother who is well at rest, has a balanced diet, does plenty of exercise, keeps close relationships with her friends, and seeks help when she feels she’s not functioning well, is better equipped to be the best mom she is than one who does not do these things. It’s not selfish to take time to exercise , or to get enough sleep each night.
I can recall the time I went to middle school and waking up to see my mom return from a running session with tales of “the nice police man” who was following her when she ran to ensure that she was in good hands. She is quite a trustworthy soul, and she would often run in the early hours of 4:00 AM. Now as a mother I can say three things about that experience are obvious:
-
I’m no longer convinced that she was insane for running at 4:00 am. It was the sole down time she experienced as a mom and she made the most of it, rather than opting to not exercise.
-
Her example and the memories are deeply for me “what moms do.”
-
The officer who rescued her was lovely! Thank you police officer to keep her secure so that she can grow up to become an aunty!
When I was first a mother, I was not one to exercise. I was adamant that it was unprofessional to take time from my children to take care of myself. It was like I didn’t have time to exercise and be a good mom” with three young children. Sometimes, it was like the grace of God to find 10 mins to get ready.
As my triplets turned two and I realized I was not strong enough to be able to pull the wagon with them all and so I began exercising. The reason I went to the gym was not to look after myself, mind you but rather to be capable of taking care of the kids.
Your Children Are Watching You… And Want to Be Like You!
It wasn’t until my children were in school when I realized that in being an “good mom” and not taking care of me I was not achieving my goals. As the little boy in The Rodney Akins song, Watching You, one day I realized ” they were watching me.”
If I didn’t drink water, how would I get my children to drink eight glasses of water a day? If I did not exercise and never exercised, how could I convince that it is vital to exercise to remain healthy? as my mother did, I started to think of ways to keep myself active even when I didn’t feel I had the time.
It also occurred to me, similar to the spokes of my bike’s wheels, that a single effort can lead to a wealth of goodness. has helped me feel more healthy and more energetic. My clothes are more comfortable and who wouldn’t appreciate this? I’ve found a new group of people to ride with or, as my single bike buddy’s husband said, “to get out on the road and solve the world’s problems”together. Through charitable rides and the generosity of my fellow riders, I’ve amassed a lot of money to support multiple sclerosis (MS) as well as cancer research.
If you view everything through those eyes of your child buckaroo, who can be seen “watching you” and “wants to be just like you,” be sure that you are being a good mother by being a great model.
