Introducing the Mother’s Survival Guide

How to add self-care to a mom’s busy schedule

 When I was about to become a mom, I had my life all planned out. I knew I would be the kind of mother who didn’t let her child dictate her schedule. He would nap around MY needs. I would never be late to anything. And I would, of course, always have time for a shower.

 Plot twist: babies don’t work like that. As most new moms quickly learn, babies don’t care one little bit about your needs. It took only one night to destroy all my carefully made plans. What came next were days and nights that blurred together, feedings that felt like they would never end, and lots of time-consuming baby snuggles. What did not happen were regular showers or any time for self-care.

 Now, with a couple years experience under my belt, I’ve figured out how to practice self-care on a mom’s crazy schedule. Here are some quick-to-use, natural products to help with the busy-mom struggle:

 1. When you need to shower

 Featured product: Ellbe Dry Shampoo

 I can not stress enough what a game changer this was for me. I wish I had known about dry shampoo during the newborn phase, but even now that my son is older, this has been a God-send in the mornings (or before a rare night out).

 When I first heard about dry shampoo, I tried to buy some, but didn’t love the products on the market, which often came in aerosol cans. Ellbe’s Dry Shampoo is an all-natural loose powder that helps absorb any extra oil on the scalp and hair. It works for all hair types and colours.

 The beauty of this shampoo is that it gives your hair volume, almost like you’ve just had a blow-out (which, depending on your definition of the word blow-out, you might have had). It’s great for when you can’t get to the shower but still want to look nice. This is also a good option in the winter, when it may be too cold to wash and dry your hair.

 We can safely assume that if you don’t have time to wash your hair, you’re probably not taking many long, luxurious bubble baths either. What moms do have time for, though, is a nice foot soak. Just pour some Ellbe Detox Bath Salts in a basin of water and slip your feet in while you feed or hold your baby. This is great for stress relief, as the bath salts help calm the nervous system. 

 Key Ingredients (Dry Shampoo):

 The shampoo’s oil-absorption comes from Kaolin powder, an all-natural ingredient with a neutral pH. It helps soothe your scalp, absorbs impurities and gives your hair a water-free refresher.

 When creating this product, I really wanted it to work on all hair colours. To achieve this, I used organic cacao, which has a brown tone that quickly absorbs and blends into the hair.

2. When you need to hydrate

Featured product: Ellbe Hydrating Mist

 It’s easy to forget to hydrate when you’re taking care of a brand-new human being. My hydrating mist is a wonderfully quick refresher that helps hydrate the skin.

 It only takes a quick spray to work. It helps wake you up if you’ve had a rough night and is great to use after a long breastfeeding session, which can leave you feeling dry and dehydrated.

 As a working mom, I keep a bottle on my desk at all times for a quick boost throughout the day. 

 Ellbe Anti-Puff Eye Roller is another way to help reinvigorate your under eye skin after a tough night. I suggest using it after the hydrating mist to reduce puffiness and dark circles.

 Key Ingredients (Hydrating Mist):

 Hyaluronic acid is an important ingredient, since it helps your skin retain water. I also love the use of rose water here. Rose water is an antioxidant and anti-inflammatory with a very pleasing scent. It’s full of healthy vitamins and minerals and helps moisturize skin.

3. When you need to moisturize

Featured product: Ellbe All Purpose Balm

 Lots of new moms experience dry, flaky skin due to hormone changes and not drinking enough water. This full-body balm is a quick and soothing solution for dried-out skin, no matter how sensitive it might be. It’s wonderful for dry lips and, if you’re breastfeeding, can also be used on cracked nipples (which, trust me, are no joke). This is great for busy moms with older kids as well, especially in the winter.

 Pro tip: Ellbe balm can be used on a baby’s bum or to soothe drool rashes.

Key Ingredients (All Purpose Balm):

 This balm is all-natural and perfect for sensitive skin. The star ingredients here are hemp seed oil, chamomile and arnica herbal oils and jojoba oil, which are all very soothing on the skin thanks to anti-inflammatory properties that help reduce redness caused by dry and irritated skin. Hemp seed oil is especially beneficial because it is full of vitamins and it can moisturize skin without clogging pores.

 Living your best life - no matter how tired you are

 Social media’s constant insistence on practicing “self-care” can get a little grating when you’re staring down the barrel of a 2-hour-a-night sleep schedule and eating leftover dino nuggets for dinner. But in my experience, it’s not an impossible feat for busy moms. With hydrating spray, moisturizer and some dry shampoo, you can up your mom game without actually needing to add any hours to the day.

To make things easier, Ellbe’s created a Mom’s bundle with a gift of your choice (pin or keychain). Check it out here.