It’s natural for new parents to focus all their care and attention on their newborn baby, but when you start to sacrifice certain aspects of your health, alarm bells should be ringing. For mothers and fathers to provide the best care and love for their child, they need to be in both great physical and mental health. You need to have the energy to juggle your new lifestyle and responsibilities, and this energy comes from looking after yourself. To help you stay on track with self-care as a new parent, here are five ideas to keep in mind whenever you feel yourself slipping to the bottom of the list.
- Stay Active
You’re probably sick of hearing about it, but an active lifestyle and physical fitness are essential when maintaining both your physical and mental health. Many people equate exercise only with weight loss, but it’s something we should all be trying to do more of whether we’re overweight or not. The best tactic is to find an exercise which you enjoy so you can stick to it regularly. This could be through joining a gym, but it could also be a simple brisk walk to the shops every day or dancing around the lounge with the little one strapped to your front! Here are some exercises for new mums to try.
- Nourish Your Body
Again, it’s not earth-shattering news, but healthy food which helps your body to function and repair is far better for you than sugary or high-fat quick fixes. When your sleep pattern is all over the place in the early weeks and months it’s likely your body will crave foods which will give you a quick energy boost, but in the long run, this is only going to cause your energy to crash again soon after. Try to plan what you’ll eat for the week ahead and keep healthy snacks like fruit, nuts, and vegetables in the house.
- Look After Your Self-esteem
Being a new parent is a busy time, and it’s likely that you’ll spend much of your time settling into family life. However, you need to remember that at some point you are perfectly entitled to your own identity and to feel good about yourself. You should try and maintain hobbies and activities which make you happy. Take time to pamper yourself and do what makes you feel positive about your appearance. The more you can love yourself, the more you’ll be able to give as a parent. This could be a time to explore ways to tackle insecurities you’ve been struggling with such as hair loss with London hair transplants or a healthy weight loss regime.
- Make Time for a Social Life
Remember to carve out time in your schedule for family and friends and, if possible, squeeze in the occasional date night to comedy club with with your partner so you can focus on your relationship independently of being parents. Perhaps you could arrange a monthly brunch or drink at the pub with friends or invite family over for a Sunday dinner. It doesn’t need to be anything fancy but maintaining these adult relationships, and support networks will keep you afloat in the tough times.
- Try to Sleep!
It’s easier said than done for new parents but try to sleep whenever you can. A lack of sleep will negatively affect your ability to function as a parent, less able to handle stress, more prone to negative emotions, depression and weight gain. Establish good sleeping habits as early on as you can so everyone in the family can get the sleep they need to be at their best.