The biggest obstacle to parents having a healthy lifestyle is the sheer lack of time. We can all feel stressed or frazzled because we’re having to separate so many different components of our brain and point our focus in a number of different directions. That’s why it’s important for us to learn to let go, have more fun, but also maintain that focus and intelligence that we know we have within ourselves to be a better parent. Here are a few strategies to consider:
Training Your Focus
You may believe that your focus is absolutely fine, but when you’ve not had the best sleep, this means that you could find yourself struggling to do the easiest of tasks. There is a lot to be said about going to the doctor just in case you have experienced issues with focusing your entire life. ADHD is becoming far more commonly diagnosed later in life, and if you are diagnosed with some form of attention disorder, there are resources to help you out, including adult natural ADHD supplements. But training your focus is another way for you to ensure that you can benefit. There are ways for you to train how to focus better, and this resource is one of the most comprehensive and up-to-date out there.
Understanding if You Are Burning Out
Burnout is something we may believe doesn’t exist or we can’t give it the attention it deserves because we’ve just got to keep going. But we all feel that we have to push through some sense of exhaustion. Understanding the type of burnout you might be experiencing can give you a far better idea of the tool kit you need to use. There are generally four different archetypes of burnout:
- The overachiever.
- The overdoer.
- The over giver.
- The overthinker.
Which one are you? When you start to become more at peace with the type of burnout you are experiencing, you are going to be able to focus on calming those racing thoughts. What’s the best way to do it?
Rethinking Your Schedule
Everybody feels that they’ve got to keep going. For the vast majority of parents, the school schedule is what will dictate the schedule. Before the children wake up or after they go to sleep, you can set aside a bit of time for yourself to either look after your mental health or focus more on your priorities. Sometimes, we think that we need to get everything else sorted before ourselves. This is why understanding your schedule and applying something like the 80/20 rule can help. 80% of the results from 20% of the efforts goes the theory, and when we start to think about this and realize that maybe something like meditation or 10 minutes of deep breathing to reset the nervous system can make you a better and more effective parent, this can make a massive difference.
It’s not easy to deal with feeling frazzled all of the time. It can be about understanding how to focus, and a better rethinking of your schedule, but also coming to terms with the fact that, yes, you are overwhelmed and now you need to prioritize yourself.
Main Image Credit Pixabay – CC0 License