three simple self-care glimmers every postpartum mom can add to her day
If you’re in the postpartum season right now, I don’t need to tell you that the days can feel like a blur. The same rhythms, the same routines, the same exhaustion… It’s a lot and I’m right there with you!
In the middle of all of that, “self-care” can feel impossible.
A bath? When?
A long walk? With what energy?
A morning routine? Loooool! Way too unpredictable!
But here’s something I’ve come to love: the idea of glimmers. Not big, life-changing, perfectly aesthetic moments, but small, doable, effortless pockets of goodness that fit into your real and current life situation.
Here are three glimmers you can add into your day with no extra time required to bring back some of your independence (and sanity) and boost your overall well-being!
Bonus: these glimmers are friendly to new Winnipeg moms and don’t require good weather (hellloooo winter)!
1. Reading while Feeding Baby at night
Night feeds can feel especially heavy. The house is quiet, your body is exhausted and time somehow stretches and stands still at the same time.
Instead of just counting down the minutes until you can get back into bed, turn that time into something that’s just a little bit yours!
Keep a book on your phone or a physical one nearby and read while you feed. Not a parenting book. Not something you feel like you should read. Something you actually want to read!
A cozy novel, a romance, something familiar, something easy.
There’s something really healthy about having one thing that belongs to you in a season where so much of yourself belongs to someone else.
It doesn’t have to be a lot! Even a few pages a night adds up and, more importantly, it gives your mind somewhere to land at 2:00am.
2. Listening to an audiobook or podcast while baby is awake
This one is magic because it doesn’t require you to add anything to your day, you just layer it in.
When baby is awake and you’re feeding, rocking, bouncing, walking, folding laundry, reheating your coffee for the third time, pop in one earbud and press play.
You can play an audiobook you’re excited about or a podcast that boosts your day! Something that reminds you that there’s a world outside of wake windows and diaper changes. It’s such a small thing, but it can completely change how your day feels.
Instead of “I’ve been pacing the living room for 45 minutes” it becomes “I got through two chapters” or “I listened to something that made me feel like myself again.”
You’re still doing all the same thing but now there’s an extra way to enjoy it and that matters more than it sounds!
3. Clean one Random part of the house every day
If you’re thinking “Hahah that’s not happening with MY baby around!” I feel you. Cleaning was not at all a thing with my firstborn. But I’m not talking about the whole house and not even a room!
Just one tiny, random thing.
A junk drawer.
The inside of your purse.
That one shelf in the fridge everyone ignores.
A basket that’s been collecting “stuff” for weeks, months or years.
Set a timer for 5–10 minutes if you need to, or just do it until the baby needs you again! This works so well in postpartum is because it’s small enough to actually finish and finishing anything that is not related to being a mom in this season feels SO good!
Over time, these little cleanups add up. Your home starts to feel a bit lighter but, more than that, you feel a bit more in control in a time of life that can feel very out of your hands.
A gentle reminder
These glimmers aren’t about doing more, they’re about feeling a little more like yourself while doing what you’re already doing.
Some days you’ll hit all three and some days, none of them. Both are completely okay!
Postpartum is not a season for perfection, it’s a season for survival, being gentle on yourself and for finding tiny pockets of light and normalcy where you can.
Sometimes, a few pages of a book, a voice in your ear, or a cleaned out drawer is exactly the kind of light you need!
If you’re expecting or have just had your baby, click here to check out my family portfolio including maternity and newborns! :) —> portfolio
