And breathe… I made it to Friday! Well, half-way through Friday with a small bit of work left to do, but close enough! Today marks the end of a significant week for me, my oldest daughter started school. Something every parent will have been through or will go through and a time that causes a fair amount of anxiety… have they got the right uniform? Will they make friends? What time do they need to be there and when do they need their PE kit?! I spent last week worrying that I hadn’t spent enough time with her, that I’d wasted the four years we’d had together (when I wasn’t at work), that I shouldn’t be sending her yet as she’s only just turned 4 (August baby).
This year, my apprehension had the added impact of COVID-19.
Not only is it the time when you feel like you are exposing
your most precious belonging to external influences that you have very little
control over (I’m a control freak!), but there’s the additional issue of this
invisible, silent predator that may strike without any warning that no one
really knows much about.
And of course, finding out on Sunday evening that there had
been two confirmed cases in two of the year groups resulting in the ‘bubbles’
isolating for two weeks, did nothing for my stress levels!
I am always very conscious of not imparting my anxiety onto
the girls, so I have made a couple of changes to my routine and used several
techniques to manage the worries and stress including meditation…
Bedtime
I have started to go to bed earlier to ensure I have time to
myself (and because I’m exhausted with the change in routine… it suddenly isn’t
OK to be in pjs all day!). Taking this time out to spend a few minutes
following a breathing meditation to reset my mind at the end of the day has
ensured I’ve been able to settle and relax and get a good night’s sleep.
My dreams have been very vivid, a sign that they are doing
what they should and helping my brain process the new things I’m dealing with.
School run/walk
I’ve made a point of not taking my phone on the school walk so
I can spend time with my own thoughts and follow the walking meditation that Judy
from BalanceTime posted on Saturday (perfect timing).
It has been wonderful to spend the time noticing my
surroundings, to focus my attention on something other than the worries that
would normally be going round in my head and enjoy some time taking in colours,
sounds and smells that would usually be missed as I rush around.
This helped to ground me after drop-off, helping the
rational part of my brain take over and allow me to leave the worries at the
school gate.
So what have I learnt?
Time to switch off in the evenings is really important for
my mental wellbeing and to enable me to sleep well… something that is imperative
in controlling my anxiety.
I really enjoy walking in the mornings and the additional
exercise has left me ready to start the day.
Some time away from my phone is essential… and nothing is
going to go wrong in the 30 minutes I don’t have it with me!
Not to underestimate the resilience of our children and
their ability to adapt to new situations and environments.
That COVID-19 isn’t going away anytime soon and we all have
to do our best to continue with life as we can, putting the measures in place
to ensure we all stay safe.
And… PE is on Wednesdays!
Thanks to Markus Spiske
on Unsplash
for the photo
