I was in Dorset last week spending time with my new little god daughter and I was just so in awe of watching my friend doing such a fabulous job of juggling a new born and a toddler (of which I am sure many of you reading this will know only too well how hard this is). Not being a mother I find it interesting – and to be honest often quite sad – that when women become mothers their position in society seems to go straight to the bottom of the pile. Even the dog gets preference. Whilst I love animals I do find it hard when I see women not making any time for themselves, even in the smallest of ways. They seem to just struggle to cope with the many demands of the day to day.
So many of my clients come to coaching just so they can give themselves the small gift of their coaching time to re-connect with who they were before they became mothers. Time to really talk and time to be really listened to. Time to have the focus just on them and time to make a list of the things they want to do for themselves. Why is it that women are still in so many ways the inferior sex? While I don’t consider myself a feminist, I do believe that women should know their self worth and be true to themselves in terms of their own needs. I understand that being a parent requires a certain amount of sacrifice but surely that shouldn’t be to the detriment of losing one’s sense of self.
To all the mothers out there – always remember you were a woman in your own right before you became a mother and your children will leave home one day and you will need to re-connect with who you once were. Don’t leave it too long that you end up not knowing yourself.
Make time for yourself – no matter how small that time may be.