If you’re a parent, you most probably adore the job. You love your kids, and you love spending time with them. However, you will also probably have yearned to have a little time to yourself too. Not only is this absolutely natural (and shouldn’t cause you any guilt at all), getting away from the little ones and being someone and something other than mum for a while can be good for you – and for them. Here’s why. 

You Can Be Yourself

Have you ever thought about heading out to the shopping centre to buy something just for you? Or booking a holiday for just the adults? If so, you won’t be the only one. And if you do any of these things, you can be completely yourself. You can do what you want to do and what suits your personality, rather than doing what needs to be done for your children. 

This is such a freeing feeling and can remind you of what you are really like underneath all that parenthood. You might even decide that this feeling needs to be a more permanent state, leading to you applying for a place at the Royal Academy of Dance or finding a hobby or getting a new job. When you do this, you can enjoy your own thing, even if it’s just once a week or so. 

Your Children Will See You As A Person

Whether they like the idea or not, your children need to see that you are more than Mummy. It’s vital that they see you have a life away from them and that you are an individual. Firstly, this will help them treat you with more respect because they understand that you have thoughts and feelings, just like them. Secondly, it shows them that they can listen to their own passions, needs, and wants, and be their own person too. Although it may seem like a strange way of doing it, being away from your children can actually help them to develop more. 

Everyone Can Benefit 

You will benefit from taking some time out from being a parent, but something that should make you even keener to do this is that it will benefit your kids too. It’s good for them to spend time with other caregivers. It shows them that there are lots of different people out there and many ways of doing things. It gives them a fresh perspective on the world, which can help them hugely in their own lives.

Your Kids Will Be Independent 

As much as you might not want to think about it, the role of a good parent is to raise children into adulthood, giving them all the tools and information they need to live independently and make their own lives. So, one day your kids will leave; they will move out and have their own homes and maybe their own families. If you haven’t done anything other than care for them during the time they’ve been with you, you’ll be at a loss as to what to do next.

*collaboration