Forget Mom Brain, Here’s How to Activate Your Imagination

iStock

Being a mom involves a beastly time management struggle. Keeping the small humans in your house fed, bathed, educated, active, and entertained on a daily basis is no joke. It’s truly no wonder why we sometimes battle with forgetfulness and allow things to slip through the cracks, a plight many of us have dubbed “mom brain.”

Some are resigned to the idea that being a mother automatically means your brain is fuzzier than it was before you became pregnant. I think it’s more likely that we’re simply so caught up in the day-to-day whirlwind of rearing kids that we’ve forgotten to be intentional about fostering our creativity. As moms, we’re required every day to alternate giving our full attention to different balls that represent the most important areas of our lives, like nurturing our marriages, keeping our houses (somewhat) clean and our laundry (sort of) done — not to mention brushing our teeth and hair, eating, sleeping and earning a living.

So should we just give up on ever having the capacity for artistic or creative power again? Heck no!

We can learn how to keep our imaginations active by modeling our children. There are certain types of activities kids seemingly never cease to enjoy, and we can easily incorporate them into our own, grown-up routines to experience more creativity. Try any of these three to boost yours:

1. Read

Read. Specifically, read fiction. Nothing sparks the imagination like a good novel. Growing up, I wasn’t that girl who was into cheerleading or dance. I didn’t play a sport.

I read. A lot.

The Babysitters Club, thrillers by Christopher Pike and R.L. Stine, coming-of-age novels by Judy Blume and every single literary work based on Elizabeth and Jessica Wakefield — from Sweet Valley Twins to Sweet Valley High to Sweet Valley University and all the Sweet Valley Saga stories — you name it, I read it. I had my nose in a book for most of my adolescence, and you know what else I had? A very active, beautiful imagination.

As a grown-up with children and all kinds of adulting to do, I know cozying up with a book can often seem impossible. That’s where Audible comes in, and it’s a total game changer when it comes to squeezing in some reading time. Listening to Outlander while driving or folding laundry? You can handle that.

2. Move

And by that I mean, move your body. I don’t know about your kids, but mine are little wiggle worms. They are constantly running, dancing and, much to my chagrin, trying to turn the couch into a trampoline.

They also come up with the most imaginative theories and ideas. I’m no doctor, but I think it’s safe to infer there’s a connection between our kiddos’ nearly constant movement and their capacity to visualize, imagine, and dream.

And it makes complete sense. Movement releases tension and stress, and without (or with less of) those two toxins to weigh us down, we automatically have more space for creativity and to dream big. If you can get outside and experience nature while you’re moving, the effects are even more powerful.

You don’t have to exhaust yourself or sweat profusely to enjoy the benefits of jump-starting your imagination through movement. A five or 10-minute walk outside in the fresh air might be all you need.

3. Play

Remember what it was like to dress up and pretend you were someone else; to invent characters and storylines with your dolls; to color and draw fairy princesses, unicorns and mermaids; to sing and dance like Jem (who was, indeed, truly outrageous)?

Who says we can’t still do those things?

These days there is no shortage of adult coloring books you can buy online, and the artwork you produce in the end can be quite impressive. The blank designs naturally require you to imagine what the finished product will look like and support the flow of your creative juices in choosing the various shades and colors you’ll use to color them in.

And just because we’re moms does not mean our days of playing dress-up are over. Next time you need some inspiration, hop over to your closet and examine what you have with new eyes. Experiment with color and pattern combinations you wouldn’t ordinarily put together. Go all out with accessories, scarves, and belts. And don’t forget your shoes! Have fun creating new outfits and actually try them on.

You can do the same thing with your hair and makeup. Sit down in front of the mirror and finally learn how to rock false lashes or winged eyeliner. Watch a tutorial on how to do a smokey eye and follow along with your own eyeshadow stash. Channel your inner Taylor Swift and paint your lips red. Arrange your hair in an updo, just for fun.

Or blast some music and jam out. Your kiddos might actually want to join you for this one! Pretend to be the lead singer and turn it into a karaoke sesh. Spontaneously choreograph a dance (dancing also counts as movement!) while you lip sync the lyrics.

Lose your inhibitions and give yourself a few minutes to be free, completely immersed in play and pretend.

And then notice how much sharper and more creative you are when you return to the whirlwind.

“Mom brain?” Pffft. Mom brain ain’t got nothing on you, girlfriend.