Rachel Cunningham
Almost 20 per cent of mothers in Ireland would choose the gift of sleep this Christmas, a new survey has revealed.
The research, which was carried out among over 1900 mums across Ireland and the UK this year and focused on the mental health of women during their years of motherhood, indicated that 30 per cent of mothers in Ireland would choose time alone as their perfect Christmas gift.
Slightly fewer (28.5 per cent) of mothers said they would love their partner to help share the mental load more evenly, rather than receiving any type of material gift this festive season.
“With 90 per cent of women saying their experience is that of an unequal sharing of responsibilities when it comes to the mental load, and a massive 90 per cent admitting that their reality of motherhood feels harder than they imagined prior to having children, it comes as no surprise that all mothers really want for Christmas is sleep and time alone,” said maternal mental health life coach Laura Guckian, of Mind Mommy Coaching.
The mental health coach said she was unsurprised that 22 per cent of mothers want to feel like they’re a good enough mum to their children this Christmas, as almost 37 per cent of respondents claimed they go to bed three to four times a week with feelings of “mum guilt.”
“It’s like putting a plaster on a leak. I wanted to find out what mothers really want and need this Christmas and the results align with what I hear from my clients every day,” said Lura.
“What moms really need are tools to help them navigate the daily challenges that motherhood bring, so that they can achieve positive mental health in a sustainable and realistic manner.
“More than half of the respondents to the research claimed that they rarely get a break from motherhood, with almost 10 per cent revealing they never do.
“Over a third claimed that if they do get a break, it is a long hot shower, which is a very sad statistic.
“A shower is a basic need yet is not considered a break to many moms. So let’s try and not give mums a gift that will only offer a very short burst of happiness; let’s try give them the gift of sleep, time and tools to support their mental wellbeing every day. After all, Christmas is just one day.”
Mind Mommy Coaching is a life coaching service dedicated to normalising the challenges of all stages of motherhood and helping moms navigate those challenges to achieve positive mental wellbeing.
Set up by mom of three, Laura Guckian, the business aims to ensure mothers have the clarity and tools they need to achieve positive mental health, and stems from Laura’s own personal experience with mental health when she first became a mother.
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