Blossoming Mother Counselling

A perfectly imperfect Valentines cake to top off a perfectly imperfect Valentines Day dinner... it included a tantrum, sulking, arguing, an apology, laughter, smiles, compliments, and love. Happy Valentines Day mamas! Thanks Raina @eatthecounterculture for the chocolate quinoa cake recipe you shared with me (years ago!)...delish! ... #imperfectmotherhood #realmomlife #motherhoodthroughinstagram See more

Anxiety is a big one for many mothers, especially new moms. It might feel like a huge weight on your shoulders when you become responsible for a little life for the first time (or even years later and with multiple children!), and the worries just keep on coming. Maybe your worries occupy your thoughts a lot of the time, and you feel tense and stressed out making it difficult to enjoy motherhood.... Have you been given the advice to take some deep breaths, or just relax, or focus on the positive? Tricks and tools for calming anxiety can be helpful for a short time, and I definitely encourage you to use them if you find them helpful! But sometimes they end up being more of a band-aid solution rather than getting to the root of the issue. Like all feelings, anxiety and fear usually respond best to being faced and worked through rather than being suppressed or forced away. Emotions have purpose. They are messengers there to help us and guide us to grow and learn. They may feel uncomfortable sometimes, but they are actually there to help us on our journeys to become more aware humans. Often, anxiety comes from a younger part of ourselves that needs a chance to be heard and understood- our inner child. So how do you access your anxiety’s wisdom and learn from it so you can TRULY relax? Invite your anxiety in. Take a seat beside it. Ask it what it has to share with you. You can do this through journaling or having a conversation with yourself. Allow yourself to lean into your anxiety, really feel it, knowing it can’t actually hurt you. And do this with lots of self-compassion. Imagine you’re your own mother. Your inner child deserves as much gentleness and love as your children do. Be open to your body’s inner wisdom- you may be surprised about what you actually need! Sometimes anxieties can really feel like they’re taking over your life. If that's the case, it's a brave and important step to reach out for help. Many women experience huge relief once they start working with (not against) their anxiety. See more

Are you exhausted, overwhelmed and full of mom stress? Ready to transform your mom stress into patience, ease, joy and confidence? Download this FREE checklist with simple tools that you can use daily to find your inner calm. https://blossomingmother.kartra.com/page/transformmomstress

Whether you need practical or emotional support now (or both), know that you are worthy of it. You deserve it. You aren’t meant to mother alone. Current times make getting support that much harder, but it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t need it or shouldn’t struggle because you don’t have it. It’s ok to need help.... It’s ok to struggle when you have to do so much alone without a support system. It has nothing to do with your worth, your value, or your abilities. You are enough. Even when surrounded by chaos

Snowshoeing in the mountains today... this is how I get through winter! Fresh air, exercise, beautiful scenery. Time with my husband and a break from my children! What’s your favourite form of winter self-care?... #selfcareformoms #mentalhealthformoms #motherhood #mothersrising

One of my favourite parts of the week: Sunday afternoon hike with my hubby. Getting fresh air, doing something we both love, and a chance to connect without having to talk over the kids. Couples time is so important and often becomes low on the priority list when you have young children.... But just like your own self-care, time to fill your relationship cup benefits everyone. Ideally this is out of the house so you can focus on each other and not be distracted by the duties of home. What does your date time look like? See more

One of my favourite parts of the week: Sunday afternoon hike with my hubby. Getting fresh air, doing something we both love, and a chance to connect without having to talk over the kids. Couples time is so important and often becomes low on the priority list when you have young children.... But just like your own self-care, time to fill your relationship cup benefits everyone. Ideally this is out of the house so you can focus on each other and not be distracted by the duties of home. What does your date time look like?

What are you doing today to take care of yourself, nurture yourself, to fill your own cup? Let’s end the martyr mentality that gets passed down through generations of mothers. It doesn’t serve our children. It certainly doesn’t serve us. Loving yourself IS the best way to love your children. ... Fulfilled mothers have so much more to give #selfcareformoms #motherhood #mothersrising #selfcompassionformoms

Happy Holidays Mamas! Christmas time for moms often means spinning in circles taking care of everyone else’s needs. To the point of exhaustion. You are worthy. You are important. Check in with what YOU really need so you can keep your own cup filled with joy, too. ... Sending you and your families a holiday season full of love, peace and joy

What does the winter solstice mean to you? It’s the darkest day of the year. Many moms are having a hard time emotionally right now, especially with the isolation of the pandemic. I see this time of year as a time for introspection and an opportunity to look at my darker shadow side. ... We all have this side. And we usually avoid it. It’s hard to look at. But the darkness of this time of year naturally draws us inward and gives us a special opportunity to look more deeply at ourselves. It doesn’t have to be scary or uncomfortable. There’s beauty in accepting and finding love for the parts of ourselves we want to ignore and push away. It’s by loving and accepting ourselves fully, with all our pain, angst, frustrations and imperfections that we can actually find our way through all of that. Through the darkness and into the light

There’s a big societal expectation that to be a good mom you need to self-sacrifice and put yourself last. Give up your needs, desires and things you enjoy. That’s what a good mom does, right? What if this is absolute, ridiculous nonsense and actually isn’t good for children at all?... Stay with me here. Of course our children need us A LOT, especially when they’re very little. And some sacrifices may need to be made. But there’s a difference between sacrificing sometimes (or even often in the early years) and being self-sacrificing as a lifestyle. Our children need to see us happy and thriving. That’s how they learn to be happy and thrive. Our children need our full attention and presence when we’re connecting with them, and that’s pretty hard to do when we’re utterly depleted, overwhelmed and resentful. Do you worry others will see you as selfish if you take care of your needs? Counting yourself in doesn’t mean putting yourself first. It means putting your needs and desires on the table as important considerations. Count yourself in, mama If you’re looking for support, connection and tools for thriving motherhood, follow me at @blossoming.mother #selfcareformoms #mothersrising #motherhood #newmommy #parenting #consciousparenting

What do you need right now? Not what do your children need. Or your partner. But YOU, mama.... What do you really, truly need to thrive in this moment? Check in with your body, not your head, and trust what comes up (whether it feels realistic or not). In the midst of pandemic stress and holiday chaos, don’t forget that YOUR needs matter