Motherhood is an excessive amount of responsibilities, from caring for our children to managing household chores, work commitments, and more. It often feels like there need to be more hours in the day to accomplish everything on our to-do lists. With carpool lines, meal prepping, loads of laundry, and trying to keep all of the kids accounted for, it’s easy for moms to neglect their own well-being, leading to exhaustion and burnout. Although motherhood is literally the best job in the world, it can also sometimes feel like the hardest, too. This season is full of joy, and it is very rewarding. Still, it can get lonely at times, which is why we created this little “survival guide” to help ease those tough days, to remind you to give yourself grace, that you are the best mother for your child, AND to give you some practical tips to help your overall health and wellbeing.
Understanding the Science
As mothers, our bodies undergo significant changes, both physically and mentally. Due to frequent hormonal changes, sympathetic overdrive, and exhaustion, we need to do all we can to support our bodies through motherhood. One key contributor to exhaustion is adrenal fatigue, a condition where the adrenal glands become overworked due to chronic stress. This constant state of heightened stress can lead to feelings of anxiety and overwhelm as our nervous system gets stuck in fight-or-flight mode.
Moreover, the lack of quality sleep exacerbates the problem, leaving us reliant on caffeine to get through the day. Unfortunately, coffee, energy drinks, and other caffeine only act as bandaids, forcing us as moms to never get out of this cycle and help the root cause, which is helping our nervous system become more adaptable to all of this stress!
Tips for Survival
So, how can we navigate motherhood with resilience and adaptability? It starts with prioritizing self-care and making small but impactful changes to our daily routines. Here are some tips to help you thrive:
- Prioritize sleep: Aim for at least 7-8 hours of quality sleep each night by establishing a bedtime routine and creating a relaxing sleep environment.
- Fuel your body with nutritious foods: Focus on eating whole, nutrient-dense foods that nourish your body and provide sustained energy throughout the day. Start the day with protein first, even before coffee!
- Delegate tasks and ask for help: Don’t be afraid to ask for support from your partner, family members, or friends. Delegate tasks and responsibilities to lighten your load and give yourself time to recharge.
- Make time for self-care: Schedule regular self-care activities that rejuvenate your mind, body, and soul. Whether it’s taking a long bath, going for a walk in nature, or indulging in your favorite hobby, prioritize activities that bring you joy and relaxation, even if it is just 10 minutes to reset!
Regulate Your Nervous System
This should be the first step! The above suggestions are very important, but most of them won’t make a major impact unless our nervous systems are rested and regulated FIRST. So what does this mean?? There are two parts of our nervous system: The Parasympathetic Nervous System (the brake pedal) and the Sympathetic Nervous System (the gas pedal). Each part is equally important! The goal is to have a fluidity between the two. If you need to be in go mode, chasing after your child, you want the gas pedal on! But once they start to calm down, your nervous system should be able to recognize this and enter a rested and relaxed state as well! Most of us as moms are stuck in sympathetic dominance. This means that even when our children are safe, our body is stuck in stress mode. When we are chronically stuck in this state, exhaustion really settles in, and motherhood challenges become physical fast.
Taking the First Step
If you’re struggling to find balance in motherhood, consider exploring Neurologically-Focused Chiropractic Care. By being on a care plan that is customized to your “mom exhaustion,” your nervous system will be able to find the balance between the gas vs brake and strive for resiliency and adaptability to all that comes with being an amazing mom!
So how do you start?! Our cutting-edge technology, the CLA INSiGHT Scan, assesses your nervous system’s function which shows our PX Docs exactly what is going on within your brain and body and can pinpoint that mom exhaustion! Take the first step towards a healthier, happier you by scheduling a nervous system scan today.
Let me tell you about our awesome friend, Alyssa and we’ll look at one of her Neurological INSiGHT Scans!
About three months after giving birth, Alyssa threw out her back. She thought it would just resolve over time, but instead, the pain she was experiencing was not decreasing and, in fact, was increasing rapidly. Alyssa was at the point where she was barely able to move off the couch, let alone care for her newborn baby.
When she saw her scans, Alyssa was really shocked and immediately a little disappointed. She was expecting everything to be lit up like a red Christmas tree! But there wasn’t a lot lit up at all. She immediately felt hopeless and like she was “unhelpable.” BUT then her local PX Doc explained to her that her body was so exhausted from the pain and the neurological state of the “gas pedal” that it was in power-down mode! The scan wasn’t lit up because it was exhausted!!
You would think with this entire story focused on the pain that, being out of pain would be the sign that this was working for her. However, being out of pain was not the first sign that this care plan was working. Alyssa said that she finally started to sleep!! She has always suffered from sleep struggles and has never been able to fall asleep or stay asleep. She also noticed that her anxiety was no longer affecting her everyday life! AND she started to feel way less back pain!
Alyssa’s life has looked different in many ways since starting with PX Docs. She is completely off all anxiety meds, has less and less pain every day, and has been able to achieve her initial goal – PLAY ON THE FLOOR WITH HER BABY. Alyssa said that she loves having a provider team that believes in her and feels more empowered to advocate for herself and her family.
Here is Alyssa’s first EMG scan! The yellow in Alyssa’s neurological scans indicated exhaustion in her body after being stuck on sympathetic ‘stress mode’ for too long.
Ready to see what your Neurological INSiGHT Scans look like?! Visit our PX Docs Directory to find a doc in your area!
Motherhood is the most extraordinary club to be a part of, but it is also just straight-up HARD sometimes! As PX Docs, we hope that we can help you find the hope, answers, and drug-free help that you have been searching for… for not only your sweet kiddos and family but FOR YOU too!
