Self-Care

Taking care of yourself is an important part of being a parent. It can be challenging to prioritize time for yourself when we have so many other people and things to take care of in our family. There is a cycle to self-care. There is a cycle to self-care. If you are not feeling well, healthy, and nurtured, your stress and fatigue can impact others around you. It can be easy to forget that adults create the climate of the family. With some intention and best practices, even the most stressful situation can be managed by adults to ensure that the home environment is one of peace and safety where all can thrive. You have to first take care of yourself before you can focus on others. If you are not feeling well, healthy, and nurtured, your stress and fatigue can impact others around you. It can be easy to forget that adults create the climate of the family. With some intention and best practices, even the most stressful situation can be managed by adults to ensure that the home environment is one of peace and safety where all can thrive. 

Sometimes you just can’t do self-care on your own—and you need others to help you. Squads can be small, intimate and affectionate while other times our squad is enormous and bonded by geographic or historic identity. The bottom line is that squad care reminds us there is no shame in reaching out to others and our squad can enrich and support our self-care practices. When you forget to put your own mask on first, your squad is there to remind you.

The following resources serve as examples of ways to support self-care practices.

Relaxation and Mindfulness (from CARES)

Caregiver Guide to Helping Families Cope With COVID-19 (from NCTSN)

Self Care for Parents of Young Chilren (from Zero to Three)

Parenting during Coronavirus: You are Enough! (from PBS Kids)