The Workingmums’ guide to Christmas recovery

Christmas is well and truly over. The kids are back at school or on their way and everyone is feeling a little bit less tinselly. For some working mums, the return to normality might be a bit of a relief after dealing with hyper-excited children or bored teenagers. For others, though, being off work for a few days in the world of parenting can make for a difficult return – it’s like transferring to a completely different universe. So what can you do to make it all easier? Workingmums.co.uk has some tips

Christmas is well and truly over. The kids are back at school or on their way and everyone is feeling a little bit less tinselly. For some working mums, the return to normality might be a bit of a relief after dealing with hyper-excited children or bored teenagers. For others, though, being off work for a few days in the world of parenting can make for a difficult return – it’s like transferring to a completely different universe. So what can you do to make it all easier? Workingmums.co.uk has some tips:

1. Don’t make any unrealistic new year’s resolutions. They may provide a temporary sense of control [if you can recall what control feels like since you had children], but it is fleeting. By February most people have given up any resolutions they ever undertook. It might be better to ease yourself back in and then consider long-term changes when you get some time to yourself. While everyone bangs on about reviewing your life over Christmas and New Year, working parents know that this is the least relaxing time ever and that the combination of Santa duties, overeating and drinking and toy assembly is not conducive to clear thinking.

2. You may have blown all your money on Christmas and the sales, but try to give yourself small treats to get through the dark days of January. This is the time to call in favours and bag a half hour for a long soak in the bath or a walk to the shops unaccompanied. Even 10 minutes of clear headspace between work and home can work wonders for your mood. Walking home from the train, parking a bit further away or parking and walking round the block before you go through the front door could give you the time to switch smoothly from one world to another. Put some soothing music on the headphones and remember when you had time to know what was going on in the charts.

3. Remember that January is the month for feeling like you are recovering from a long, wild party, even if you now don’t have the time to sleep off the effects. Take it easy and pace yourself. There are 11 more months to go till you do this all over again and Easter is ages away, even if the supermarkets are already promoting chocolate mini-eggs. Remember that your kids are probably feeling slightly delicate and half-asleep. Treat January as a month-long recovery project and don’t overload it with activity.

4. So you’re on a diet. Try to keep your energy levels up and don’t go cold turkey on the cold turkey. You need a good balance of nutrients. Pulses and nuts are a good idea and keep some fruit in your bag for when you get the urge for something sweet to give you an energy boost.

5. Avoid reading any articles about working mums being bad mothers in the press. Develop a second skin. They are mostly written by people who have no idea what it’s like and that just getting out of bed some days is a major achievement and worthy of a gold medal. Ditto any comments you may overhear about working mums not being committed. Let them try getting the kids ready for school every morning after broken sleep and keeping everyone to deadline, including yourself, and then ask them about the meaning of commitment.

6. Remember the return to normality is all about getting back into a routine. As with all things children, once you have a routine sorted it all slots into place. Until, of course, they change their routine…

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