A few days ago I was treated on a Mom’s Day Out by Sunlife. I along with a handful of other moms took two to three hours away from our families to put ourselves first. We learned how important it is to take care of ourselves so we can take care of our family. I’ve stressed this idea here on my blog one too many times– how self-care really is important and how we moms need it from time to time.
Mommas Tippy Go of Googly Gooeys, Patty Laurel, Ginger Arboleda, Kelly Misa and yours truly. All smiles after listening to the insightful talk of Michele Alignay about finding balance as a mom in this modern times. Read further to know what I learned from her talk.
While I was on my Mom’s Day Out, my firstborn out of nowhere messaged me. This reminded me why me-time is very important. Because you can’t pour from an empty cup and more often than not we moms always put our families first that we tend to feel guilty whenever we put ourselves first.
WHAT IS BALANCE IN MOTHERHOOD?
Is there such a thing as balance in motherhood? I’d like to believe there is but it isn’t the typical balance we all know if. It’s not in the form of a balance scale in which both sides are equal. Think of a mobile crib toy that has more than two hanging things. Despite carrying different toys and dangling unevenly, it still has balance. This is how Michele aptly describes how balance in motherhood is. There are more than two aspects in a mom’s life that she juggles and most of the time each aspect isn’t equal with the other and yet it still works.
WHY DO WE NEED TO RE-BALANCE?
Changes. Challenges. Children. These are mainly the reasons why our balance as moms is challenged. Imbalance is perfectly normal and will always be part of life for it is a natural consequence of living. It’s a sign that change is taking place. Imbalance just like re-balance is a natural phase and as moms the first step is to be aware of what it is about. To re-balance is to find a solution to manage the different aspect of our lives. Often times we feel stuck or overwhelmed with what is happening in our daily lives. Again, changes, challenges and children could be one of the reasons why we have imbalances in our lives and every now and then, we try to find our way to re-balance ourselves so that we can live a happier life.
PERCEPTION OF BALANCE
What you want to do.
What you think you should do.
What you think you can do.
This perception of balance makes it hard for us to balance in the first place because we moms love to multitask and more often than not we want to get as many things done as possible–this I am super guilty of! There are so many things we want to do but we always prioritize what we think we should do and what we can do and so this is where the struggle begins. As much as we can, we try to do everything sometimes even if we’re dead tired. But what’s more challenging aside from physical exhaustion is the emotions we feel when we try to do everything–what we think we should do, what we think we can do and what we want to do. This is where we should make a choice.
Would you rather have peace and satisfaction? Or judgement and guilt?
HOW DO WE KEEP ON RE-BALANCING?
One of the simplest things we can do to re-balance is to prioritize self-care. For everything really starts with ourself. When there’s an internal knot– an obvious sign of imbalance where we hold stress, tension or pain– you can easily see how it can manifest physically or emotionally.
SELF-CARE
Self-care is a means to re-balancing and harmonise life and motherhood. It allows you to pause, sit and be, and find ways to restore your balance. It helps you acknowledge that there are aspects in your life or parts of you that may be out of harmony. It is path to better take care of our children and family. To prioritize the self is to ensure everyone’s well-being in all aspects of life.
CARVING PRACTICAL WAYS FOR SELF-CARE
There are so many practical ways for self-care. It can be as simple as affirming your goodness & starting the day with a positive thought. It can also be fixing your schedule and setting aside 10, 20 or 30 minutes for quiet time with yourself. You can also start by letting go of the things beyond your control or controlling the way you react over things and people. Finding time to do a physical activity you enjoy most. Putting on makeup. Having an extra 5 minutes in the shower. And many more! They don’t really have to be grandeur, it is simply doing things that make you happy without feeling guilty for putting yourself first.
This is what I actually did during the Mom’s Day Out. Even though I was itching to go home to my kids because lil’ Ms. JG followed up her message with “Please come home na.” I knew that if I rushed home that afternoon not feeling recharged or stressed over traffic and whatnot, I’d end up being home but stressed out. Not really a good way to spend time with my kids right?
So I took advantage and indulged a bit. I had a lovely massage and enjoyed good food. Then I went home straight to play with my kids and catch up with them.
Most of the time we moms always wonder if we’re doing the right thing when it comes to raising our kids. At some point in our lives we all have questioned and doubted ourselves. Which is why this very emotional #SunShorts video got me crying buckets of tears because like many moms, I can totally relate!
Finding balance all while raising a child is not an easy feat. There will always be imbalance for every change and challenges that comes in our way especially for those raising another human being. But one of the things that can help unburden ourselves as parents is doing something today to prepare us for our future and for our kids’ future. This is what companies like Sun Life is for, to help & guide us when it comes to these matters. They have different financial products suitable for different needs. Financial planning and everything that has to do with money isn’t often openly talked about as a family especially here in the Philippines. But I honestly believe that knowing your options on how you can prepare today for a brighter future for you or your children is a must for all moms, all parents really. Because what we do today can really help shape our family’s future.
Self, children and family, home management, career, financial life are just some of the aspects we moms try to juggle and balance. Balance is having harmony in different aspects of our lives. They won’t be equally balanced no matter how much we try–so don’t stress yourself over it. What matters is you’re happy and fulfilled with the kind of balance you have in your life.
Watch the rest of the #Sunshorts film at www.sunshorts2.com and get a chance to win a trip to Tokyo. You can also know more about Sun Life’s financial products by talking to their financial adviser for free. Get in touch with them HERE.
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