10 Healthy Tips for Stay-at-Home Moms to Avoid Feeling Down
During the pandemic, everyone got to experience a bit of what stay-at-home moms experience every day of their lives.
Was it fun? Sometimes
Did it get tiring? Absolutely!
Would you want to do it again? Nah, not really!
As women, and especially mothers, we are expected to hold everything together, which we do, but it sometimes gets lonely. Because we tend to feel sudden emotional changes, it gets difficult to maintain the balance that our emotional health needs and this is heightened when you spend more time alone than with others.
Depression among stay-at-home moms (SAHM) is genuine, and I’ll be sharing healthy tips for stay-at-home moms to learn how to keep it together and avoid feeling lonely.
Who is a stay-at-home Mom?
Society has used stereotypes to define who a stay-at-home mom is. When we hear the word, we immediately think of a jobless, unskilled woman who is always looking stressed.
Reality is fairer because a SAHM is a woman who stays at home to manage her household, take care of the children, and oversee the general affairs of the home. Staying at home or being a SAHM doesn’t mean that you do not have the necessary skills to excel in your career life. It is the choice a woman makes to put her household duties first before any other thing.
Being a SAHM is a full-time job and takes a lot of effort, so most women prefer to focus on it without engaging in other forms of financial hustling.
Pros of being a stay-at-home mom.
Contrary to popular belief, there are several benefits of being a stay-at-home mom, and these include:
- Flexibility
- Increase in school performance
- Good behavioral effects on your kid
- More involvement in your child’s life
- More influence on the kids
Cons of being a stay-at-home mom.
Could you be at a disadvantage? As much as there are benefits to being a SAHM, there are also some disadvantages. I don’t like to think of them as disadvantages, but more like factors you need to consider. If you agree with me or not, these are some of the cons of SAHM:
- Loss of income
- Loss of career
- Depression
- Lack of purpose/fulfillment
- Self-isolation
- Low self-esteem
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Why are stay-at-home moms prone to depression?
The depression rate among stay-at-home moms is on the high side, and I believe one of the primary triggers is an inadequate appreciation of the work done. The average man does not think that being a SAHM is a job; it’s more perceived as an obligation for the woman and therefore does not require other forms of acknowledgment.
Another reason could be that she feels disconnected from who she was and who she is. Most SAHMs were once working-class women or, at the very least, filled with dreams of who they wanted to be, only to stay home every day of the week. This disconnection can result in constant sadness, self-hate, low self-esteem, and depression.
Healthy tips for stay-at-home moms.
Treat it like a job
I know being a SAHM makes you think that you are out of a job, no office, no deadlines, but the plain raw fact is that you do have a job and should treat it as one. Your office is your home, and your family is your client.
Taking care of the home, children, and husband is a full-time job; I mean, if it isn’t a job, why do you need to pay anybody (babysitters and house help) for doing a quarter of it?
Learning to see and treat being a SAHM as a job will help your mental health, make you feel like you’re doing something purposeful – which you are, and give your confidence the boost that it needs.
Get Workers
In reality, what I mean by workers is that you need to stop trying to do everything yourself. From basic chores to more complex ones, assign some to your kids and seek help from your husband as well. Make sure to give your kids appropriate tasks for their different ages when they are back from school and done with their schoolwork.
This strategy relieves a lot of stress and stops you from feeling like the world’s weight is on your shoulders. It also makes the work more enjoyable and less of a burden.
Prioritize yourself
This is more about you than anyone else. Trust me; if you, as a mother, are not okay, then the entire house is not okay. You should learn how to practice self-care constantly and deliberately. Your mental health is tightly connected to how happy and content you are with yourself and life.
If you don’t make yourself feel good, deliberately indulging in things that make you feel good, you might become a shell of yourself, which will hugely affect your husband and children.
Exercise
Yes, I said it.
A healthy body is a step toward a healthy mind.
You do not need to lift weights, but a simple walk around the park, gardening, or occasional biking can relieve stress and help you feel better.
Exercise has been known to release endorphins and make you feel good, and exercise also helps your brain function more. If you haven’t already, you need to start adding exercise to your daily SAHM schedule. If you are the type that doesn’t like the word “exercise,” you can try to make it more fun by indulging only in exercises that interest you. You can try out dancing or yoga instead of the gym or parks.
Have a circle
Friendship and community are crucial. Having to be by yourself, again and again, will become lonely. It even gets worse if all the people in your circle are immersed in their personal lives or careers. You should join a great social platform or community.
You can share your fears, struggles, and failures, and they’ll understand because they’ve been there. They’ll also celebrate your successes, no matter how small.
Having a circle is important for your physical, mental, and emotional well-being.
Get a side gig
I chose to use ‘side gig’ because being a SAHM is a full-time job. Having a side gig gives you a sense of accomplishment and helps you find happiness in something. You might decide to have a side gig closely related to your previous work or something you are passionate about.
There are many ways to have a side gig nowadays, from freelancing to volunteering and trading. You can choose to be a YouTuber, podcaster, or blogger. The choice is all yours!
You can use your skill to earn a side income for the family. That you cannot assist financially in the home might just be what makes you feel it was a wrong decision to be a stay-at-home mom.
Create a schedule
Have time for different activities in the house. From the moment you wake up to the moment you hit the bed at night, it is best to have a schedule.
This helps you to be organized and know when you are to rest and when you need to do something different.
Learn a skill
The process of learning something new is exciting and joyful. It could be something that fascinates or interests you. Start a process to learn and commit yourself to it. It will give you something to look forward to daily aside from the regular schedule of cleaning and washing.
Compliment yourself
If no one acknowledges your efforts, then at the very least, you need to do it yourself. Pat yourself on the back as many times as possible. Look at yourself in the mirror and be proud of what you’ve accomplished, even if it’s just finishing the laundry.
View every of your house chores and tasks as accomplishments. It helps boost the way you view yourself and remove any form of self-loathing.
Take a break
It’s alright to take a break as well. If you are constantly feeling overwhelmed and it seems you might not be able to make it through the day, you should take a break. During these times, you can employ someone to help with household chores, stay with the kids and just have some time to cool off. You can take your children to a trusted relative or just have a family getaway, especially on vacations.
Let’s Recap
There are tons of controversies around stay-at-home moms. The former times expect the woman to always be at home, take care of the children, home, and her husband, while the new age believes that women can go out and make as much money as men. The truth is that none of these sides are right or wrong, and it’s all a matter of perspective and mindset.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with being a stay-at-home mom; so far, this decision is by choice. The trick is to learn what works for you, engage in activities, even if it’s virtual, and talk about your day.
It is also okay to take breaks, vacations, or short get-aways.
Depression is not from God, so fight it as hard as you can, and I’ll always be rooting for you.
Do you have experience in being a stay-at-home mom? Are you a working mom? What do you think about being a stay-at-home mom? Let me know in the comments below.
READ ALSO: 40 Quick and healthy meal ideas for toddlers
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