Downtime for Parents, a secret key to happy parenting

We are living in a technology world where there is no space for relaxation or mindfulness. Having downtime or me-time is most important for every person and if you are a parent then it is a must for you. Downtime for parents is the most important factor in happy parenting. It is part of your parenting journey.

You have to deal with your working life, your finances, your relationship with others, your social life, and the list is so long. Sometimes you feel exhausted and blame yourself that you cannot justify your children and are not able to take good care of them.

Have you ever thought about why are you getting exhausted or feeling burned out? The answer is you have never given yourself the energy booster you needed. If you agree with my words then it is time you need a Downtime.

Well, the Downtime is what you love to do to relax your mind and body. It should be relaxing and of course, it gives you more energy to yourself. Take time to find out which activity gives you these all. Do what makes you happy and feel worthy.

Downtime for parents is a must there in their schedule as after the hectic day they take some moments to energize them. It also gives them a sense of worthiness and some time to love themselves.

Here, I mention some activities to guide you on how you can enjoy your downtime.

List of Downtime for Parents

Pursuit of your Hobby

We all have some kind of hobby from childhood but somehow, we have not continued and left it behind. The reason may be our busy life. After passing childhood our focus was on study, career, and then family. We left all the dreams and passion behind and moved forward.

Eventually, we forget about it, our dreams, our passion, our hobby, everything. Along with that, we left that calm and peace of mind. When you start to focus on what gives you happiness you would find that it is relaxing and you feel peace of mind.

When you pursue your hobby it makes you differ from others as now you are focusing on yourself. Your hobby whatever it is gives you the time to relax your mind. It gives you the space from your daily chores that you are chasing all the time.

When you start to engage in your hobby at that time your mood gets uplifted and releases hormones that make you positive and also energetic.

Meditation is Must

Meditation is a scientifically proven method to give your mind relaxation along with it gives you mindfulness. Meditation has its own benefits which affect your mind and body.

You may think that is why meditation is a must, I would say that it is a must for everyone but for parents it is magic. Meditation itself is a miracle because of its advantages. It will give your mind Meditation is a fantastic way to get relaxation and downtime for you. Your mind will start to think clearly about your daily tasks and become more productive.

You can also be calm when you acknowledge your weaknesses and strengths through the meditation journey. The acknowledgment of your weaknesses and strengths makes you aware of your trigger points where you can start the journey of conscious parenting.

The calmness of your mind gives you the strength to maintain your relationship with your child, partner, family, and friends. You can see the positive changes after adopting meditation as your downtime.

Meditation can also boost your physical energy which you can use to make your work effective. You can feel the positive changes in your body, mind, and your way of thinking over time.

Playdate with Children

Schedule a day once or twice a week to play together. You can plan outings with your family or just go to the garden and play an outdoor game with your kids.

Planning a playdate with children is the best downtime for parents as it has many benefits at the same time. When you plan a playdate with your children you spare a time slot only with you and your children. A playdate gives you space to know each other, you can see the hidden talent within your child and of course in you.

You can feel a sense of closeness and attachment with your children and partner (family members) which makes you feel safe and secure. A person needs a safe and secure place to maintain their mental well-being. It will affect a person’s physical health too.

When you plan a playdate with your children you get physically active. It looks like a fun workout for you. You can choose any activity according to your taste and fitness level. You can lose calories while enjoying with your children, strengthen your body while having fun, and achieve your fitness goal.

A playdate with your children also helps you to connect with them. You start to get your bond stronger than ever. So, it directly improves your relationship as your children also feel close to you. Because when you plan a play date you are choosing them. You are choosing them to spend quality time, a distraction-free time.

Your children feel loved and valued when you spend time together.

A playdate has multiple benefits at the same time and yes you can consider it as a downtime. After all, downtime is not the time when you always lie down on the sofa, and scrolling your phone, and watching Netflix.

You can also make some downtime if are just doing something you like and let your child explore there and enjoy the surroundings. It is totally ok if you want some relaxation at that time.

Plan a Vacation

Vacation means you are breaking a loop of daily routine. You are off from your job and household chores. You are out to explore new places and refresh yourself by giving yourself some space and time.

You can take many options while planning a trip. You can go for a solo trip, or a family trip, or you can choose a vacation without children. Even if you don’t have many days for vacation give yourself a minitrip at the weekend. It is also a good option for taking downtime.

Related Article– Child-Free Vacation for Parents

Vacation gives you time to rejuvenate your inner-self, it gives you the time to restart yourself. You can create lots of happy memories which are stored in your mind forever. These memories are fuel for your upcoming days. You can have a good time with your family, partner and with yourself.

A vacation gives you a space where you can meet yourself. It also helps you to experience new places which makes you more mindful of yourself.

When you plan a vacation and make it a downtime for yourself you can feel that this is the best choice for downtime for parents.

Take a Short Break During Your Day

Vacations need a long planning and much management but taking a downtime daily is also pivotal for parents to energize regularly.

Our mind has immense power and capability but it also comes with some limitations. Our mind can focus only for at least 45 minutes continuously. After that, it finds a way to escape and start to wander. It loses its attention and gets tired.

So, it is better to give your mind a 5-minute timeout when needed. After a time out it works with its full potential and you can notice that you can work with more focus and effectively.

You can also choose the POMODORO technique where you take 5 minute break after 25 minutes of focus work and after 4 breaks take a big break of 25-30 minutes. There are many other techniques that will also help you.

There are many apps available nowadays that help you manage your time and energy using POMODORO techniques.

The 5-minute timeout may be stretching your body, a few minutes of talking with your friend, or you chat with someone, listening to a song, or doing anything that gives you relaxation. But don’t forget to come back after that 5-minute break.

It will help you to avoid burnout and an overload of stress.

Enjoy screen time together

This is a very controversial topic as many people do not agree with me but still, I like to share it with you as it is important when you are dealing with the new generation.

Our next generation is tech-savvy and they like to be surrounded by technology. So, when you show interest that already they love, they really like it and feel closer to you.

Plan something to enjoy screen time together. You can play online games with them or just watch a family movie or cartoon movie together. When you see your entire family together enjoying screen time, it will give you some memorable moments to ruminate in future times.

You feel relaxed while enjoying screen time together. Our minds also need some entertainment to relax and it is the best option to watch a movie with your children and family and have a fun time enjoying popcorn.

Of course, you should apply some boundaries before but enjoying a movie after a long and hectic day becomes the most relaxing downtime for parents.

These are just a glimpse of the idea of downtime, you can add your downtime according to your nature and choices.

Conclusion

These topics are the way of my downtime and truly say it works for me. Maybe yours are different from mine. I also love listening to songs, hanging out with friends, and enjoying a cup of tea. What are yours? Tell me in the comments.

The logic behind the downtime is to take a break from routine life and have time for ourselves. So, you can do what you want because you are the role model for your child and they follow you in many ways. They learn from you that it is okay to live for ourselves and take downtime to relax and restart.

When you become a parent your responsibilities increase as you have to nurture an individual. You are the role model for your child.

Parenting is not an easy journey. It takes time to learn, unlearn, and relearn according to the time and phase of children. Getting updates and upgrades according to children has also become a necessity in this digital era. For that, we have to be prepared all the time to cope with the new challenges of parenting that is the reason you should take care of yourself.

An empty well never quenches thirst so take a regular break to fill yourself with positivity and energy.

May this article give you a little understanding of downtime. If you find value in this article spread the word by sharing it with other parents who really need downtime.

Thank you for reading.

Happy Parenting

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