Hearts are all over the place and LOVE is the topic many are talking about this month. While I LOVE RuPaul's quote "If you can't love yourself, how in the hell you gonna love somebody else?" it really rings true as a mom.  Some of our self-care and self-love that we did before having kids is NOT the same as what we can do after having kids. 
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So, let's talk about realistic self-care because it's time to show Mom some Love this February. 

You will have ups and downs, you have a child, there are bound to be times that you don't react the way you would want to, where you feel like you are handling it ALL ALONE, where you feel like you don't have a single second to take care of yourself...that's why we ALL need to plan out our realistic self care and ways to LOVE ourselves even when all those mean perfectionistic thoughts keep coming into our minds that add to our feeling like we are failing over and over and can't do anything right. Because let's face it, Spa days aren't happening every afternoon!

Here are four easy ways you can care for yourself that don't require hours of planning and coordinating and finding a sitter.

1. Turn on some music. It can be relaxing to calm you down or a great song that you love to rock out to while it's playing.

2. Then, since you have music on, why not dancing around? It's pretty hard to resist at least bobbing your head to the music of a great song you love. 

3. Step outside. There are so many benefits to just stepping outside for even a few minutes a day. 
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4. Jump into the Momxiety Club, come to a support session, a workout, or even just chat online with other mamas who are going through this thing called motherhood alongside you.

Remember to subscribe to the podcast and share it with your mom friends.

Looking for more support or help to implement these tips? Join the Momxiety Club Membership

This week we are wrapping up the monthly topic of goals that won't trigger momxiety and talking a bit about the impossible demands of parenting during COVID. It's been a hard few weeks for many moms, with more and more in-person activities being canceled, virtual school days, school and daycare closures, and quarantines from potential exposures. This is an excellent article that sums it all up.  COVID Parenting Has Passed the Point of Absurdity by Melinda Wenner Moyer

My takeaways from this week:
-Be kind to yourself
-Weave in some gratitude each day
-Take each day one moment at a time

If you'd like to take part in a "scream and vent" outdoor outing let me know let me know here and feel free to share this and invite some mom friends.

Join the email list, if you haven’t already because I’ll be adding the Get Out of the House without Losing Your Cool visual checklist to the Free Resources! There you can also grab your copy of How to Set Goals that Won't Trigger Anxiety and more resources to help you manage momxiety.

Creating a home command center is an excellent way to tackle momxiety.

This week, I’m diving into the one system I recently implemented that has made a BIG difference and a big step forward to creating and maintaining an organized and peaceful home (which was my main goal for 2022). 

Can you guess what it is? It’s “Levine Mission Control” aka our Family Command Center. Learn about ours, how I set it up simply, and why you need one.

Join the email list, if you haven’t already, because I’ll be adding the Get Out of the House without Losing Your Cool visual checklist to the Free Resources! There you can also grab your copy of How to Set Goals that Won't Trigger Anxiety and more resources to help you manage momxiety.

​Last week I talked about goal setting for the New Year and how to set goals that won’t trigger anxiety. This week on the podcast, I dig a little deeper and break down one of my big goals, to create an organized and peaceful home because that helps reduce my anxiety.

So far, **knock on wood** we haven't been dealing with remote schooling, so listen to this episode with that little caveat in mind. I know dealing with work, home life, remote school, and kids without childcare make everything 9 zillion times harder! I'm trying to prep and get a little more organized and into a routine in case that happens again.

You may be asking, “Tori, why are you talking about this again?” 
Well, my friend, did you get a chance to implement everything from last week yet? 
Did you get a chance to grab the FREE goal setting that won’t trigger anxiety download and set your goals? 

If you did, that’s awesome, pat yourself on the back. You are on fire! 

If you didn’t, it’s fine, that’s why we are covering it again today! Repetition is key. I know there are a lot of different ways people listen to podcasts or read a blog. On a walk, in the car, around the house, while working, while hiding in the bathroom, or when you need a minute to zone out while your kid is playing next to you. Not to mention mom brain…and what I’m finding out more and more about is that ADHD brain is a lot like mom brain. The thought pops into your head and is gone by the time you get to write it down let alone have a chance to implement anything!
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Plus, you need to have time for yourself to destress from the day without little/or big people demanding things from you or being all up in your personal space. I had a few nights where I stayed up waaaay too late last week and watched some new favorite shows on Netflix… “Blown Away” and “Baking Impossible”.  

OK - I digress. 
Back to goals and organization…

I’m going to share one of the personal/household goals I set and then go through the steps and share how I am breaking it down into manageable chunks. Aaaannndd with that, I also will be making a YouTube Video to go along with this so make sure you head over to the Momxiety Club YouTube Channel and subscribe and hit the little bell button to be notified when the video is LIVE.
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So, last week I used the example of laundry and am going to go with that again because it’s one of my BIG challenges here.  Our dining room table often ends up being our laundry table…either with heaps of clean laundry or stacks of folded laundry.
Don’t believe me…here is the good version:

My goal is to keep laundry off of it and at most it can stay there for a day..okay maybe three days. 

So that’s my big overarching goal I’m working toward.  How do I break this down into smaller manageable steps?

1. Well, I make sure I throw laundry in and don’t do load after load all in one day. I’m aiming for one-two loads every other day.
2. Then, I make sure I take the laundry out when and only when I am able to fold it and don’t need to just throw it on the table and switch loads.
3. Then we have more manageable stacks to take upstairs…and this is also easier as my 2 year old lets me go upstairs without him to put things away now…so that may not be the case if you have little ones who have to be held…and that was one of the reasons most things didn’t get upstairs before.

So, there’s a little breakdown of how to make a goal that won’t trigger anxiety.
Let me know if you have any that you would like me to break down for you by emailing me at [email protected]. 

Also, if you haven’t yet, go grab your free copy of How to Set Goals that Won't Trigger Anxiety.  This will help you strategize how to have less overwhelm in 2022 because a relaxed and happy mom leads to a relaxed and happy family ... or at least helps you deal with the constant meltdowns! 

Stay tuned, next week we are going to continue on the organization train and discuss Command Centers to better get everyone in the house on the same page.

Remember to subscribe to the podcast and share it with your mom friends and if you’re not, please join our email list and you will receive access to all of the free resources from the Momxiety Club. 

Looking for more support or help to implement these tips? Join the Momxiety Club Membership or head to the Momxiety Club work with me page.

Talk to you next time!
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With Gratitude,
Tori

It's a New Year! Listen as I chat about how all the new toys that arrived during the Holidays and setting BIG New Year's Resolutions can add to the overwhelm of momxiety. Let's set better goals and set up our spaces to better tackle momxiety.

Head to www.momxietyclub.com to find a new FREE download - How to Set Goals that Won't Trigger Anxiety - to help you figure out how to have less overwhelm in 2022.​

Looking for more support? Join the Momxiety Club Membership for less than $1/day!

When you become a member of the Momxiety Club, you will find both emotional and physical support for the stress, anxiety, mom guilt, and overwhelm that comes along with motherhood (AND a place to share in the joys of those little ones as well)!

Get ready to get out of your head, connect with other moms who get it, and kick those overwhelmed, isolated, and anxious feelings to the curb!

It's the end of 2021, COVID cases are back on the upswing and many are still trying to navigate seeing family while keeping unvaccinated kids safe. As we are preparing to see some family that we haven't seen in two years and while trying to keep our kids as safe as possible (7 yo is half-vaccinated kid with a chronic illness and 2 yo isn't old enough) I began thinking about risk tolerance and risk avoidance.

Listen in and hear my conclusions and recommendations for continuing to navigate this time.

If you find yourself in a similar place and need someone to talk to, the Momxiety Club is that place for so many moms just like you.  This is a place to talk about ALL the things including how anxiety can show up in the form of anger.

Some people can deal with it and for some people, it sends us in a downward spiral.  If you need support, please reach out @momxietyclub, via email [email protected], or join the next Momxiety Club Support Call.

FYI - In 2022 the Sneeze Proof Your Pelvic Floor Course price is increasing! So gift yourself a great pelvic floor and core this year!
Leaking a little after you cough, sneeze, laugh, lift your big kid, or jump? You don't need to have accidents along with your toddler! Check out Sneeze Proof Your Pelvic Floor™ Course to regain control and function of our core and pelvic floor!

​Listen in on this episode where I talk about how I’ve been handling life as I am thrown little curveballs over and over again.  When mama duty calls in the form of sleeping in a toddler bed with a sick kiddo,  keeping kids home from school, losing the only babysitter you trust during a pandemic, researching potential chickenpox, all plans go right out the window.   

On top of all the stresses that come with sick kids, comes the added bonus of the house being a complete disaster!  Some people can handle living in a messy house, others find that it just adds to their anxiety.

In this episode, I mention an article about burnout in parents with sick kids during the past two years.  =  The strain of parents taking on sick kids while working from home or taking time off of work to care for their kiddos is so challenging for all of us.

When you know self-care is the answer, but also know it’s impossible, that just adds another layer on top of this already stressful time.  Selfcare is seemingly impossible when we can’t do anything for ourselves because we are taking care of sick kids, business, work, the house, etc.

If you find yourself in a similar place and need someone to talk to, the Momxiety Club is that place for so many moms just like you.  This is a place to talk about ALL the things including how anxiety can show up in the form of anger.

What do unplanned haircuts, Aquaphor, an at-home COVID test, and throw up on a Paw Patrol Puzzle have to do with each other? These are all topics we talk about in this episode which sounds a lot like what a Momxiety Club support session!  

My Virtual Assistant (VA), Michelle Ducie, and I chat about motherhood overwhelm that includes Vaseline on the carpet, children cutting their own hair, and stick around until the end to hear my story of an at-home COVID test turned vomit on my son’s Hanukkah gift.  

Now granted these are surface problems, but when you have Momxiety and you are feeling so overwhelmed with daily life, it is helpful to air your troubles to a mom that gets it and that’s exactly what we did with this episode and exactly what we do in the Momxiety Club support sessions.  

Don’t forget to check out @momxietyclub on Instagram and comment on our Thursday December 2nd post with an emoji that explains something that has gone awry in your home lately. i.e. ✂️, ?, ?. 
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Solidarity mamas!

​“Today I want you to think about all that you are instead of all that you are not.” This was a recent post on the Momxiety Club Instagram and I wanted to talk a little more about it here on the podcast.

This is a tough one at times and I am more often than not (READ - like always) thinking about what I am not…not, what I am.  

I would tell my kids, ”You’re so strong…Oh wow you kept trying!” but think to myself, “You’re so weak and out of shape. You just give up and are a failure.”

Shouldn’t we be modeling how to talk to ourselves in a positive manner? Isn’t this what we want to teach our kids?  Shouldn’t we continue talking to our kids like this beyond infancy and the early school years?  What made us stop talking to ourselves in a positive manner?

I’ve been thinking more and more about how my mind seems to think in “all or nothing” ways and working on more positive self-talk…even if it’s only one little thing a day that breaks through the negativity.

Listen in and let me know what you think about how anxiety affects your self-talk and your “all or nothing” view or attitude.

Are you worried that your child's pediatrician office is going to label you an "anxious mom"? Or that they will dismiss your concerns because you're "just an anxious new mom"? In previous episodes, I have shared that I was always concerned about this! I still go back and forth in my head if I have to call the pediatrician to ask a question, thinking "they are gonna think I'm nuts for calling about this...or they are going to think I'm nuts because I should have called immediately after a bump or bruise, etc."
Well, listen in on my interview with the PediPals, Dr. Ana and Dr. Sami because you’ll hear how these pediatricians reassure us that they are here to help and not judge! These wonderful pediatricians have taken to social media and host their own podcast to help give parents trusted information…and take the anxiety out of parenting.

In 2019, Drs. Ana and Sami launched their new company the PediPals after meeting during residency. With PediPals, they aim to educate parents about common pediatric questions, ailments and recommendations, and discuss the issues that require attention but may not be able to be addressed at routine pediatric checkups.
To hear a bit of the continuation on this episode here is a link to my interview on the The Well Child Podcast.