Being a stay-at-home mom comes with all kinds of expectations. Whether you’re home with the kids or getting them to school every day, there’s a constant influx of work that needs to get done. A tide of never-ending laundry, the churn of dirty dishes; meal prep, planning, and coordinating schedules. On top of that, stay-at-home mom’s are expected to put on a happy face even when they aren’t feeling it.
Most stay-at-home mom’s experience depression at some point. No matter how much you love your children or your spouse, you may wake up one morning and feel off without understanding why. And when that happens, keeping up with all those household responsibilities can feel impossible.
Taking care of your family is important, but so is taking care of yourself. Here are some helpful tips for coping with depression as a stay-at-home mom:
Self-Care
Just the words ‘self-care’ are triggering for some. Your first response to this might be a little flash of anger, or even amusement. As if there’s time for self-care! Because you are the queen of your castle and taking care of your family, it’s important to take a step back and look at this from an objective perspective. What does self-care really mean?
It means putting yourself and your needs on equal footing with the needs of other people in your family. In this case, self-care means:
- Setting Boundaries
- Getting to Know Yourself
- Carving Out “You” Time
- Eating Healthy Foods
- Staying Active \ Getting Outside
It’s very common for stay-at-home mom’s to get so caught up in everyone else’s lives and needs that they feel like strangers to themselves. Maybe what you need is a massage or a night out—but a good place to get started is really just connecting with your needs, interests, and desires again.
Celebrate Yourself
While you might be tempted to stay moving at all times, it’s important to take some time to celebrate your accomplishments. Maybe everyone else thinks the house runs on its own and doesn’t notice all the work you put into prepping meals and keeping things tidy. Again, give yourself the gift of looking at your work objectively. Take joy in what you’ve done, instead of worrying about what you still need to do.
Establish Routine
When you’re struggling with depression, it can be hard to maintain a routine. Counterintuitively, one of the best methods for coping with depression is putting one in place if you don’t already have one. You might feel overwhelmed by everything you do, but sitting down and making a checklist of tasks and chores can help put it in perspective—and it can also give you a handy tool for assigning those chores to other people in your family.
Find Community
Another common cause of depression for stay-at-home mom’s is feeling isolated or even downright lonely. It’s important to find ways to satisfy that social itch. Whether it’s reconnecting with old friends or making new ones through common interests online, it’s important to establish regular avenues for social activity outside your family.
Some people turn to book clubs, hiking groups, or board game meetups—others try out new artistic hobbies. Getting in touch with your own wants and needs and spending time outside your family is an important part of staying intellectually engaged with the world.
Counseling & Therapy
Depression often goes hand-in-hand with other concerns. An unhappy marriage, medical issues, or unresolved childhood trauma bubbling up during motherhood. Many mothers struggle to cope with undiagnosed postpartum depression—the fallout of which can last for years.
If you’re feeling alone or unhappy and struggling to keep up with your day-to-day, consider reaching out to a qualified therapist for support. A qualified therapist can help you work through your feelings in a safe, supportive environment, where you can be open and honest.
Schedule a Consultation
If you’re struggling with depression as a stay-at-home mom, please don’t hesitate to reach out to schedule a consultation for depression therapy. You aren’t alone. We offer convenient, flexible, remote options for therapy that are perfect stay-at-home mom’s with busy schedules.