- Find time for yourself and be in stillness at least once a day, even if only for 3 minutes...
- Cultivate opportunities to practice mindfulness (formal practice such as breath practice or the body scan and informal practice – i.e. everyday activities such as showering, getting children dressed, eating).
- Be intentional with your use of technology.
- Schedule time to just be with your children with no agenda in mind.
- Practice seeing the world through your child’s eyes and step into their experience.
- See everyday moments with your children as opportunities to connect, instead of waiting for the perfect moment. (e.g. walking to school, the going-to-bed routine, teeth brushing - instead of waiting for weekends, summer vacations, etc.).
- Get to know yourself well... really, really well. Learn to become an observer of thoughts, emotions and body sensations and the messages they may be offering you.
- Give yourself permission to take a time out and ask for help.
- On occasion, take a moment to reflect on the values you hold dear for parenting. What kind of parent do you aspire to be? What do you need to be able to live those values?
- Invite compassion to be the default when you’re just not sure what to do.
- Check in with your body throughout the day for holding any stress, tension – our
children are soaking up our emotional states (mirror neurons).
- Spend a few moments everyday reflecting on a pleasant moment you had with your child/ren and/or something you appreciate about them.
- Learn to recognize the voices of social comparison and then learn to let them float away, like clouds in a vast blue sky.
- Remember to breathe... lots.
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