This Mother’s Day, Make Time for Moms to Embrace Healthy Habits

The term “wine mom” came into the popular consciousness during the COVID-19 pandemic. Through reels, posts, and real-life experiences, the “wine mom” became a familiar character—a lonely and overworked mother who is overwhelmed by caretaking and desperately trying to laugh it off and keep it together for her family.

Although this term reflects the very real experiences many parents face, using alcohol to deal with those feelings isn’t the healthiest option. 

This Mother’s Day, we challenge you to resist wine mom culture—and embrace healthier habits to help you unwind and cope with stress.

Recognize the Pressure to Conform

Alcohol is one of our most socially acceptable substances. However, drinking alcohol carries many risks, especially for women. Parenting is hard, and while wine mom culture does validate that, normalizing and glorifying alcohol use on social media can have damaging effects on women’s lives. 

Why It’s Important to Resist

When you choose to deal with stress in a positive way, you’re prioritizing your health—both physical and mental. Indulging in an alcoholic drink may feel relaxing, but the risks may not be worth the short-term buzz. 

When you set healthy boundaries around alcohol, you’re also setting a good example for your children and other family members.

If you are feeling stretched too thin, it’s important not to brush that off or push through it—practice setting healthy boundaries for “Mom time” without the need to use alcohol.

Ways to Unwind Without Drinking

Self-care is a great way to combat stress without harming your body. Here are a few ways to unwind while staying sober: 

• Practice mindfulness, meditation, or a spiritual or religious practice. 

• Explore creative activities, such as painting, drawing, writing, or another expressive outlet. Even if you’ve never tried this before, it’s never too late to start!

• Get outdoors! Time spent in nature can improve your mood—even if it’s just a walk around your neighborhood. 

• Exercise is also a great mood booster. Is it too cold or rainy to go outside? Consider hitting the gym or putting a yoga video on YouTube.

• Experiment with nonalcoholic drinks. This could be coffee, tea, seltzer, or trying your hand at mixing your own mocktails! If you’re not up for making something yourself, many grocery stores now sell nonalcoholic options like beers, mocktails, and sparkling mixers.

For more facts and myths about wine mom culture, check out another one of our recent blog posts here.