Self Care, Mama!

Let’s take a minute to talk about self care. Self love. Filling your own cup first. Taking time for you, to recharge that battery, and get back in the game. Me time. A happy place. A spiritual oasis. A primitive escape.

Escape, for me, is a wonderful thing. A simple release. An organic reset button. A chance to embrace the chaos that is my everyday life, to accept it, and to move on. To honour my emotions, and reflect on what’s weighing me down. Because some days - most days - are a little soul-sucking. Don’t get me wrong, I love my life. I love my kids. I really, truly do. But it’s exhausting. It’s overwhelming. It’s all-encompassing. And sometimes, I just need to escape. And we aren’t really escaping, are we? Call it a time-out, if you will. Mom-out, if I may.

Because being a mom is everything.

It’s not a standard job with morning breaks and lunch hours. It’s not something you can check out of for an hour to catch your breath. You can’t call in sick, or tired, or take a personal day. It doesn’t take vacations. It doesn’t slow down. It doesn’t ever stop. No tap outs. No phoning in a sub. No throwing in the towel. Even on the very easiest of days, being a mom is hard.

So, yeah, at the end of the day, when they’re all perfectly and safely tucked into their beds and asleep for the night (let me pretend…), it’s me time. Because all day, it’s been them time. Making snacks. Changing diapers. Managing emotions that are far too big for the bodies they’re coming out of. Pick-ups and drop-offs and setting alarms to make sure you don’t forget a kid along the way. It’s all about them. And sometimes, as selfish as that sometimes makes me feel, I just want it to be about me.

Self care is just that. Putting yourself above anything and everything else, even if it’s just for a minute You, doing what makes you feel like you, however that might look.

I’ve got a friend who tells me she feels her best when she’s just worked out so hard she wants to puke. That sounds absolutely awful to me, but hey, it’s what makes her feel good. So I applaud that.

Top-shelf snacks and a movie that says too many grown up words? If that’s what resets your battery, then that’s a great idea.

Meditation, reading a soul-touching book, and writing on clean paper with fancy pens? Let your soul do the talking. Maybe light a candle just for good measure!

Me? I’m a long soak in the tub with my favourite face mask kind of girl. Toss in a bath bomb, scrunchie that hair out of the way, and call it an evening.

Yoga pants, scrolling the ‘gram, and laying on the couch? I can also commit to that.

Self care is personal. It’s necessary for the survival of your soul. It’s healing and restoring and whatever you need it to be. Because your entire existence didn’t stop when you became a mother. You’re in there somewhere, and you deserve whatever it is that makes you feel whole again.

Kelsey Kitt is a work-at-home-mom of three in northern Alberta. When she’s not chasing kids around, she is also a freelance copywriter, wine lover, and Parental Guidance content creator. You can follow her and all her family’s adventures on Instagram at @mommydoesntlie.