On my morning walk with my dog Milo, I heard the sounds of stressed-out parents in my neighbourhood. A result of the long summer holidays slowly coming to an end.

I really enjoy the pace of the school holidays, and having my kids around. But it can be challenging. 

Parenting is hard. It’s hard when they are babies when they are toddlers, when they hit puberty, and when they are teenagers.

You have probably heard of the aeroplane oxygen mask analogy. Where in an emergency you put your mask on first before you help those around you. You need the oxygen first so you can assist others.

But we don’t have to wait for an emergency to put our oxygen masks on.

Giving yourself a break and finding something that energises you is an essential part of your parenting journey.

It is not a luxury or a treat to do something that is good for you every day. You cannot parent well if you feel depleted and exhausted.

I know a lot of mums feel guilty about putting themselves first. Just recently I was desperate for a quick afternoon nap to recharge. My in-laws were due to arrive at our place and I didn’t want to get ‘caught out’ being lazy. Those are the kind of self-imposed judgements I am learning to battle.

I should have taken the nap. Because that evening I was pretty boring company. And by the time bedtime rolled around I was quite unpleasant and grumpy.

Please give yourself some grace. Everyone; your spouse, your kids, your workmates, will benefit from you taking care of yourself.

And it doesn’t have to cost anything or take a long time. Wellbeing can be marketed in a way where you feel like you have to be doing yoga, at sunrise, in Thailand, in expensive leggings.

Part of the challenge is figuring out what makes you feel good. And when you figure that out, the next thing to do is to find a way to schedule that into your day.

I love the outdoors, and I am very blessed to live in a coastal environment. I will often find myself looking wistfully from my kitchen window when it is high tide. I can’t spend all of my day at the beach, but it helps to have a little taste of it each day to keep me happy.

And I think that is key. A little bit of what you like each day is better than putting it off until you have more time. Life will always have some other hurdle to overcome, and that is a very good reason to have some self-care in place.