Listen to Your Body and Be a Better Parent

In the hustle and bustle of running a house and family you may find yourself feeling a little neglected and run down. As we focus on completing our chores and providing food and living for our family we often forget to look after ourselves and we can do this without even knowing.

Sometimes we may go without meals or end up grabbing something fast and fattening that we can eat on the run and we often do not drink enough water throughout the day and by mid afternoon we are ready to climb into bed knowing we have a good eight hours of slogging to go. You may have had a few late nights or interupted sleep because of a sick family member or even because you are overtired and this will affect your performance the following day.

All these things leave us feeling flat, dissapointed, grumpy and lowers self esteem and motivation.

We don't need to live our days like this so here are a few things we can look out for to make each day a little easier and more productive and help us to be the energetic, positive and delightful parent we want to be.

The key is to stop focusing on what needs to be done and listen to our body to make sure it is in the best condition to do what we have to do.

Things that drag us down;

• lack of sleep (late nights or broken sleep can really knock the stuffing out of the next day and drag your performance and tollerance down)
• lack of water (making sure everyone else is catered for will not keep you alert and productive. dehidration can affect your ability to think and make decisions quickly and will leave you feeling mentally and physically tired).
• lack of adequate nutrition (poor eating can deprive your body and mind of nutrients and energy to do chores and care for family members).
• lack of laughter (laughing is the best and cheapest way to put a positive spin on a grey day. Even forced laughter can release endorphins into your body and make you feel good.)
• lack of personal time (without time to clear your head you may feel like you are never making any progress in the never ending battle to keep the house and family together).

Ways we can pick things up;

• Planned naps (short 15 - 20 minute naps whenever your body is feeling tired through lack of sleep will return you a state of alertness and allow you to continue your tasks and be more tollarable with your family.) Often you can feel tired just after lunch so you should listen to your body and have a short nap. You will feel refreshed and be more active for a few more hours. If you have children in the house with you it is a ggod idea to put a movie on and sit with them on the couch and sneek 15 minutes while they snuggle into you and watch the movie.  Do Not plan to sleep more then 20 minutes as your body will try to enter a deeper sleep pattern and this will make you feel worse and have the opossite effect.
• Drink lots of water. The best way to do this is always have a cool glass of water in the fridge or high traffic area so you can have a sip each time you walk past. It is better to sip a bit at a time than to drink a whole glass at once and you will find that you drink more water this way. If you go to the toilet replace what you lost with more water. A well hydrated body will be a lot more efficient and will have more energy and tollerance with the issues and challenges of the day.
• You are what you eat and if you eat rubbish you will feel like rubbish. Plan tea breaks throughout your day as if you were employed. If you find you have missed a meal and are looking for something quick, go for a piece of fruit instead of a burger or packet of chips / biscuits to tide you over. This will hydrate, give you energy and not make you feel even more tired as your body tries to digest it.
• Make sure you laugh for at least 5 minutes every day. Even if you have to force a laugh it will benefit you.
• Find a few moment each day to spend some time with yourself. Put on some music you like, have a cuppa in the garden or grab a book you like and read a few pages. Your mind will thank you.

5 easy things you can do, no effort needed except to listen to your body and act on what is says.
Try these steps from tomorrow and see how different your day can be.