Stress Management Tips for Moms

Mothers – especially new mothers may be overwhelmed at times and it’s completely natural. What isn’t natural is letting stress consume you as it affects your body, emotions and children. So, take a deep breath and check out some of these stress management tips:

1. Figure out your stress signs

When you’re able to identify how you react to stress will help you curb your overload mode and these behaviors can affect your kids. Listen to your body until you identify your warning signs.

Some common stress signs are:

Rising blood pressure
Spiked heart rate
Dizziness
Speaking louder or yelling
Irritability
Lapses in judgment

2. Take a break

Sometimes stress can be unavoidable, but you can get away for just a few minutes to feel less overwhelmed. Give yourself a quick stress break to decompress or just give a new perspective.

Try taking a time out – for moms: Put up a “do not disturb” sign on your bedroom door. Listen to relaxing music or take those ten minutes to organize something small you’ve been meaning to do.

3. Deep breathing or meditation

Deep abdominal breathing and meditation are proven to help moderate stress and help your body relax.

Try these:

Use slow, deep breaths, inhale slowly to while counting to five, pause for two counts, and then slowly breathe out the same way, again counting to five. Keep repeating the sequence until you feel relaxed. This is also a de-stresser you can do with your kids.

Close your eyes, slowly breathe out three times, and imagine you’re in an elevator on the top of a building. “Press the button for the first floor” and watch the buttons for each level slowly light up as the elevator goes down. Watch as your stress fades away.

4. Exercise

The research proves that exercise improves your mood and if the thought of exercise seems daunting – you probably just haven’t found one you enjoy! Biking and hiking are great low impact exercises you can do with your kids. Start by taking a walk in the afternoon with your kids, then add hiking on weekends and biking after dinner.

If you’re looking for a personal stress relief: hit the gym or just take a relaxing walk by yourself, take a book and have a seat in the park for a little bit.