Give yourself a break, Mom

I’ll let you read that ridiculous statement one more time for effect.

That’s like saying that I stopped breathing or eating because I thought I didn’t deserve it.

I worked—quite a lot, more than full time hours—and went to college, though I did finish from home because I also cared for my infant full time. She also had various therapies at the time due to her prematurity for about three years, so I also did her therapy every day. You get the picture. I was exhausted and unhappy, but the worst part is that I don’t remember a lot of that time with my baby, and I think there were a lot of mornings when I didn’t even smile at her out of exhaustion.

Now I make sure to smile at her every morning, and any time I see her looking at me. I also make sure to sleep every day. My body pretty much won’t let me go without now; when I try, I am a zombie at best. I don’t know how I did it for those years.

Moms, right now, I want you to give yourself a break. Other than your children and yourself, you owe nothing to anyone. You don’t have to bake something for the bake sale, you don’t have to do that favor for twenty friends, and you don’t have to do anything that you don’t want to do outside of what you must do for yourself and your family. And you certainly don’t need to do these things to be worthy of anything—let alone taking care of your own body’s needs!

You are worthy just as you are.

Isn’t that a liberating thought?

No matter how cranky you are without coffee or how many times you forget something or how often you make homemade meals or not, you are worthy right now. So give yourself a break, give your body the sleep and nourishment it needs, and take care of yourself.

If you don’t believe me, fine. But think about it. Even if you are taking care of your children flawlessly, what kind of example are you giving them neglecting yourself? Show them the way you hope they treat themselves someday by what you do to yourself today.