How To Curb Anxiety On Stressful Days {Ecouragemet For Homeschool Moms}
Parenting, homeschooling, and managing everyday life is not easy. Right now your plate feels full and this can cause stress to becomes a major factor in your life leading to anxiety. These tips will help your curb your anxiety and find balance on stressful days.
Take time to regroup
“Self-Care” is a major buzz word right now. This is for good reason. More and more people are learning that we need to take time to care for ourselves to properly care for our families.
One great change I have made is to practice mindfulness activities. The biggest change for me is to take the time to sneak away and meditation in the noon sun for a while each day while the kids are eating lunch. This gives me a few minutes without anyone else allowing me to balance and relax. On days my anxiety pops back up I sneak away for a few more minutes of time to recenter.
Meditation is a great lesson to work with your children on as well to help them relax when stress and anxiety gets in the way.
Switch up your lesson plans.
When planning our lessons for the week I make a point to add in a few alternate options to give me something I can switch to if the day gets too rough. This can range from having the kids work in fun schooling journals to putting on a video that ties in with our lesson plans.
Get out of the house
Sometimes a change of scenery is the best way to change the situation when you are dealing with anxiety is to get out of the situation. Get out of the house even if it is just in your back yard to read aloud and enjoy some quiet time. We love going out under the gazebo to read when we need a break. Right now the kids are loving The Tuttle Twins books for social studies.
Field trips are still quite limited but field trips have a lot of great benefits for homeschoolers. Take advantage of homeschool field trip options you do have even if it is just a trip out on a walking trail to get some exercises for P.E. and watch nature for science.
Have a meal or snack.
Anxiety can sneak in as a warning signal when you need something to eat or drink. Make a snack or enjoy your meal early to help calm things down a bit. This trick works particularly well 3whe your stress is caused by a cranky child. Children almost always calm down when given a snack and some water.
Break down your to-do list.
Perhaps one of my best tricks for coping with anxiety as a busy mom is one I learned from my little sister. Make a list of everything that needs to be done and break it down into small bits and pieces. For me, this is going room by room and listing each thing I need to do. As those small tasks get marked off my anxiety begins to improve and it is the perfect way to delegate the work to others to help.
Want more encouragement and tips for homeschool moms? Check out the entire Enocuragemet for moms series and some great homeschool bloggers with even more goodies for your homeschooling journey here.
