Parenting: How to Maintain Your Own Identity While Raising Children

Parent, but still yourself. Each of us has unique interests, values, and dreams. While parenting changes our priorities, it doesn't have to erase who we truly are.

This module focuses on the balance between caring for children and maintaining one’s own identity. It helps you find space for yourself without feelings of guilt and shows you how to establish healthy boundaries.

Awareness of your own needs – you will learn to recognize what is important to you outside of your parenting role.
Healthy boundaries – how to be a caring parent while not losing your sense of self.
Supporting self-worth – you will discover that taking care of yourself is not selfish, but healthy.
Better balance – practical tips on how to carve out time for yourself amidst the daily hustle.
Mindful parenting – a happier parent means a happier child.

Discover how to stay true to yourself while being the best parent possible.

Imagine that you have half a day just for yourself. What will you do with that time first? I will start doing something creative that I have put off for a long time.
I will call someone I haven't heard from in a long time.
I'll sit down and just do nothing for a while.
I will start planning how to use that time as efficiently as possible.
I don't know, I just wander around for a while until I decide.

If you had to compare your days to a painting, what would it be? An orchestra in which each instrument plays its part.
A canvas full of spontaneous colors.
Hourglass.
Map with arrows and notes.
Silent lake under a cloudy sky.

How do you feel when your child disagrees with your decision? Surprised, but curiously I ask what he thinks.
Slightly irritated, but I'm trying to stay calm.
I feel like explaining it again and again.
It freezes inside me and I think about what I did wrong.
I am glad that he/she expresses his/her own opinion.

When you think of yourself before you had children, what do you feel? Inspiration, as if it were another person that I can rediscover.
Sorrow for what is no longer.
Pride, how much I have grown since then.
The guilt that I have distanced myself.
Nostalgic warmth, but nothing dramatic.

Imagine your child saying, "I want to be like you when I grow up." What comes to your mind first? I must be a better role model than I am now.
That's nice, but let him be himself above all.
It scares me a bit, I don't feel up to it.
I am touched and proud.
I will start to think about what exactly they mean by that.

What space does your "self" have in everyday life? One that I actively create.
Very small, I often push it somewhere.
Sometimes it appears when I get lost in music, a book, thoughts.
I feel like I am protecting him like a treasure.
I don't even know exactly where I end and others begin.

Which word best describes your everyday decision-making? Responsibility.
Intuition.
Strategy.
Doubts.
Service.

If you had to describe your inner strength, it would be... Quiet and deep like the roots of a tree.
It is not constant, but when it comes, it is strong.
Logical and systematic.
Creative, changing like the wind.
Dependent on how others treat me.

When the child is playing and you have a free moment, what do you do? I am looking at it and thinking.
I will quickly dive into my duties while there is time.
I will open something that personally interests me.
I think I should do something "useful."
I will either fall asleep or completely shut down.

What does the word "I" mean to you? Something that is constantly evolving.
Something that occasionally gets lost in others.
Clear compass.
Sometimes a secret that I do not yet know.
A foundation that needs to be cared for like a child.