The secret to finding time for yourself

Time and the lack of it has to be one of the most common complaints of mothers everywhere, doesn’t it? The constant merry-go-round of feeding, cleaning, washing, wiping, cooking, negotiating and disciplining is overwhelming and leaves little to no time for ourselves.

I know for me there was a time where I was constantly frustrated by everything I ‘had’ to do and that I never seemed to get to the things I wanted to do.

But here is the secret.

It really is a merry-go-round and it will continue regardless of whether you take some time to step off, nurture yourself, re-group and then get back on.

Mothering is a never ending cycle of tasks that need doing and whilst yes some cannot wait (hungry mouths and dirty bums) others, (dirty floors and washing), will still be there waiting for you after you’ve taken some time for yourself.

So it is time to start stepping off the merry-go-round regularly and giving ourselves the time we need.

And let’s be honest with ourselves.  No one is going to stop the ride for us and offer us the break; we have to make this happen for ourselves. It is our job as chief nurturer in the family to make sure we look after ourselves as well.

For some of us, this will mean calling on our partners to step up and take our place, for others it will mean thinking about the tasks we do to work smarter, but for all of us the biggest challenge will involve changing our thinking about our work as mothers and caregivers.

We need to give ourselves permission to let things slide when WE need time for ourselves and start lowering the often impossible standards we hold ourselves to.

Me?

+ I’m learning to embrace the constant layer of sand that lives on my floors.

+ I’m trying to look fondly on the little brown handprints Eamon leaves on my newly white walls and accept the fact that I never will actually see the bottom of the washing basket.

+ I’m trying to work smarter rather than harder to create more time in my day for the things I’d really rather be doing.

After all, I’m sure when my boys are out in the world driving cars and forgetting to call their worried Mum, I’ll be thinking back on this time having long forgotten what I was so frustrated about.

Do you have any time-saving tricks to add?  Come on… share your secrets for finding time for yourself with me.

*Enjoyed this post? Read more in my Ebook – Mothering the Soul.