The day the pandemic was announced, I sat in my dining room, flooded with shame. ⁣
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My first thoughts were how I would survive with my three kids and no escape to recharge.⁣
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How had I become the type of mother when faced with a global pandemic that panicked about spending large amounts of time with her kids?⁣
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I cried as the shame ate at me. ⁣

Standing Up To Shame

Shame loves to tell us our feelings are wrong and that we are broken and flawed.⁣
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Shame tried to tell me I was self-centred for worrying about my mental health. ⁣
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There is nothing shameful about monitoring our needs. Isn’t that what we teach our children to do?⁣

Advocating for ourselves

We’ve been programmed to believe we’re asking for too much. The system works better if we believe our needs come last. ⁣

We cannot ignore our mental health needs. We must find ways even when it feels impossible to care for ourselves. ⁣
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Our health is vital to our families’ health. ⁣
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Please repeat after me, caring for yourself is caring for your family. ⁣
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Push through the guilt, challenge the shame and make the time. ⁣
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What’s your favourite form of self-care?

xx
Christine

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_{Originally posted to Instagram July 22, 2020}