As a Mom, I have come to the conclusion that it is normal to have what is called "mom guilt." We all make mistakes, and that is innevitable. But why is it that when we lay in bed at night thinking about the day, those mistakes outshine the positive times? It seems like if we do ONE thing wrong on the day, and a hundred things right we seem to focus on that one thing. When I went from having one child to two it got even worse. The things I did wrong turned into things I didn't do in the day and things I should have done. I didn't spend enough time with my son. I didn't spend enough time to teach them their spelling, or letter recognition. The house was a mess. I didn't get a chance to take the dog for a walk and should have. I gave my kids Mac and cheese for lunch instead of a healthy sandwich with veggies. It's like all of the sudden I forgot all of the things I was doing that made me a good Mom. I was so hard on myself and I knew it wasn't fair to my well being. I know I'm a good Mom, so why does my mind constantly want to remind me of everything I should have done differently. That's when I started journaling. I forced myself to write down things in the day that I did. I wrote about things that I teach my children. I wrote specific things I am doing most days to create kind, respectful children who feel love every day in the home we have created for them. And guess what happened? It actually helped me sleep better and longer! I wasn't up in the night with my mind racing and spiraling. I wasn't thinking about what I didn't do. I made myself feel so much better about myself by reminding my mind why I am a great Mother and increased my self confidence and self esteem in this chapter of my life. We constantly teach our kids about positive self talk. (If you dont, I highly recommend it!) But as parents, we don't often practice it ourselves. The mind is so powerful, but we have control over what we believe and know is true. Do I still mess up? Of course. But journaling in the evening and letting go of that and focusing on the positive things in motherhood and in my skills as a Mother allows me to actually take time to recognize how important those positive things I am doing are benefiting my children instead of getting easily overlooked. My mind changed from "Ughh, I just gave my kids Mac and cheese for lunch" to "my kids bellies are full and they are content." Creating positive space in the mind about Motherhood is so important and makes us feel so much happier, and less anxious. Moms- You are doing amazing and please remind yourself that!
I found the journal to be so beneficial that I actually published it to Amazon and gave a few to my friends. They use it every night and have also said the benefits it has had on their mental health and self esteem. I love it because instead of just being a journal where you have to think of your own material, headlines, subjects etc, this journal has prompts. Think of mini worksheets with questions and answers you have to fill in. Some examples include "Today I made my kids laugh when I..." and "The core valued I am teaching my kids are..." There are SO many prompts and also makes a great keepsake for your kids, gift for a Mom friend, or baby shower gift.
You can get your copy on Amazon (US)
Amazon (CAN)
as well as Amazon (UK)
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