It is very hard to get a rest time for mothers. They are the only category who do not take rest even when the doctor has prescribed it. But you are worthy and it is very good for you to take some time for yourself! Between your job and responsibilities at home like spending time with your children, and making time for your family life, you may feel impossible to take any time for yourself.
Having the “me time” is of importance nowadays. There is no need of any guilt feeling at the idea of leaving behind your husband and children while you take some time off.
Putting away some time for yourself on your to-do list is very important for your physical and mental health. Once you’ve discovered what really resonates with you or when you have experienced the benefits it brings to your personal and family life, taking a break will occur naturally.
Eline Landon, author of a book in French about “maternal burn-out” (“Burn out maternal et épuisement spirituel”), advises mothers first to aim at “modest beginnings,” like drinking a coffee on the couch, taking a walk around the house to breathe, reading a chapter of a book you started ages ago and haven’t finished, taking a hot shower, or dedicating a little time for prayer.
“The essential thing is to find out how to take a break and find my inner ‘heaven,’ a time for rest which, repeated several times during the same day or same week, allows me to reconnect with my deepest self where the presence of Jesus is, in order to continue on the road, at peace,” she explains.
Your loved ones also benefit from this “me time.” Without it, you risk becoming an overwrought mother or an eternally ill-tempered wife.
Laetitia Pouliquen, another French author on women’s issues, says, “What do we do first in our day? For me, it is important to put God first, as much as possible. Second, I take care of myself: for the cup to overflow, it must be full. I take the time to put on make-up, eat a good breakfast …”
In order to be able to give good things to others, a woman and mother must also receive these things for herself.
Through prayer, we establish a strong bond with the One who can do everything. Author Éline Landon invites every mother to express the emotions that she feels, in the same way that Jesus expressed them to God his Father.
“Jesus expresses emotions too: he too weeps, he too becomes angry in the temple. But peace remains in the relationship he has with his Father at all times,” she says. She encourages us also to “open our hearts, with our feelings and our emotions. Jesus understands them, and he will put them in order and establish us in peace.”
We can begin our day with a few minutes of prayer in the morning. We can also participate in prayer groups with other mothers too. During that time you can entrust your kid with another mother in the same prayer group. The duty of caring children can be shifted among all other mothers each week.
Taking time for yourself, especially to rest and renew yourself spiritually, will allow you to give your best to your family with a joyful heart. It may seem hard to make the time, or counter-intuitive to take time alone so as to love your family better, but it will always be worth it.