Last Updated: May 11, 2024 | Mama’s Shell
After 6 months of giving birth, I felt I had done nothing besides feeding, sleeping, and diaper changing. I felt a lack of productivity and realized how significant having hobbies is.
My little one was a terrible sleeper both at night and day in her newborn and infant stages, along with having colic problems. In addition, I exclusively breastfed her on demand every 1 to 1.30 hour gap. So, having a hobby seemed like a luxury to me in that situation. Little do I know that there are still a lot of hobbies that can be done at home in such a situation.
So, here are the 5 hobbies that can be done if you are currently in a situation like I was before. Before jumping into the hobby, you should know, “Why should you consider these hobbies in your already hectic, tired life?”
The answer is to feel motivated, productive, satisfied, refreshing, and energetic.
Reading Book
If you are a book lover, then don’t stop reading books after giving birth. Yeah, you may not be able to read books at your convenience. However, you can read books while you breastfeed. You can use a book holder to keep your book steady while both your hands are occupied to position your little one during breastfeeding. When you are done reading the opened pages, just promptly use one hand to turn them in.
Benefits
- Reading books will give you a sense of productivity.
- A captivating read will keep your mind alert so that you will not feel drowsy during breastfeeding.
Skin and Hair Care
Body care is a basic need for everybody, except mothers. Why am I saying so? We only get a little time to brush our hair once a week. So, if we rarely get any leisure time, skin and hair care becomes our hobby. I suggest never letting your hair be disheveled. Follow this daily routine:
- brush your hair at least once in a day and
- Keep your skin and lips moisturized.
The weekly routine for 24/7-occupied mothers is to apply shampoo at least once a week.
This minimal routine will take 5 minutes from your motherhood routine. You will be amazed to see how this simple routine transforms your fatigued look into a refreshed one.
Benefits
- Following this minimal routine will help you feel refreshed.
- You will feel more energetic when you see a vibrant reflection of yourself in the mirror.
Indoor Gardening
Growing indoor green plants requires some more time than other hobbies, but the benefits are irreplaceable.
Benefits
According to Healthline, indoor gardening
- relieves stress,
- boosts creativity,
- increases productivity
- improves focus, and
- promotes recovery.
Seek the help of professionals to know which plants would be easy for you to grow in your tight schedule. In addition, study and double-check with experts about plants before they grow to see if they would be harmful and allergenic for your little one or not.
Making DIY Toys
This is the one hobby that will save you a lot of time and hassle when your newborn slowly crosses the infant stage. Your baby will explore every object and corner of your house, regardless of how many toys you buy. So, to keep your baby and household safe, you would need a lot of age-appropriate DIY crafts to borrow your baby’s interest and practice their milestones.
Benefits
Making DIY toys would
- help you stay focused and creative
- keep your little one busy and promote their growth.
Writing
Believe it or not, when your life transitioned into motherhood, you were not an ordinary person like before. You have gone through an extended duration of excruciating labour pain, stitches from major surgery, countless sleepless feeding nights, handling tantrums, and a lot more. Like every mother and baby, their story is unique, too. You are the hero of that story, and you can write your own story, too.
Benefits
- Your daily writing about your struggles and feelings of happiness while raising your baby would give you a sense of accomplishment and success.
- You can also pass down your diary as a gift to your child when they are adults. This would indeed be the best gift of her life.
The first few months of motherhood itself are a journey of hardship. Nurturing a newborn and an infant requires a lot of effort, a vast amount of time, and patience. Most mothers don’t get even five minutes for themselves if they don’t get any help from others. On top of that, all of the repetitive tasks (feeding, lulling to sleep, changing, and bathing) of raising a baby sometimes can’t instantly give us the satisfaction of success.
This situation impacts a mother’s health, recovery, mind, and productivity. Concerning that, hobbies can actually help you overcome your inner restlessness and make you feel valued.
