Your Health Matters Just as Much as Your Kids

Anyone else’s body feel foreign to them? Mine does. I cannot believe how different my body is after having my daughter. This was not something I even thought about in my daily postpartum life, until I started getting sick. I mean I just pushed out a baby and I’m taking care of a newborn, why would I even be thinking about my health. Big mistake on my part!

My health had completely gone downhill because I wasn’t taking care of myself. Breakfast was a luxury if I had time and eating out started to be a normal dinner. The nasty viruses and common colds that are always around were getting me and I found myself sick monthly. That was not how I wanted my life to be, let alone it couldn’t be that way when I’m responsible for taking care of my daughter.

There is nothing harder than pushing through a sickness to take care of your child and there is nothing worse than the guilt you feel when you pass it on to them. When I am sick and around my daughter, I try so hard to always wash my hands, not breath on her, sanitize everything I touch and have her dad help out as much as possible. Even then, that’s not always enough to prevent her from getting sick.

This last time I was sick with the flu for a week, and gave it to my daughter. What lasts for a week for an adult usually lasts twice as long for a baby. Now I am dealing with frequent diarrhea blowouts and occasional throwing up. I would take being sick over and over again if it meant my baby was happy and healthy. 

I realized I needed to stop ignoring my health for the sake of my family. I needed to help boost my immune system daily in the little time I had. I still make sure my daughter’s health is a main priority, but I’m also taking care of myself too. 

Daily working out, eating healthier, taking vitamins and drinking a lot of water has been a game changer. These are all things we know we should be doing, but continue to push aside because "life" gets in the way. 

All you mamas out there remember your health is just as important as your babes. We become so caught up in taking care of everyone else, we forget about ourselves and that’s when we get sick. We always want to be 100% for our kids, but we can’t be if we’re not feeling 100%.