Five Steps For An Anxiety Free Back-To-School With Stick2Me (plus giveaway!)

As the beginning of Caterpillar’s second year at school looms I’m struck, as always, with a whole host of emotions.  Change of any kind is always tricky for someone with a history of Anxiety and means I have to work extra hard to stay ahead of unwanted thoughts and worries.  Do you feel the same?

Part of me is ready, because he is ready.  Since our return from Bulgaria a couple of weeks ago, Caterpillar has been a little more restless, demanding and, frankly, bored.  A year of full-time school seems to have diminished his ability to play alone, and combined with us many activities during the last few weeks, this has resulted in him demanding my attention more than usual.  I’m definitely feeling this emotionally as self-care time reduces and stress levels increase.  I crave routine and Caterpillar probably needs it too.

But there’s another part of me filled with sadness.  I’ve discussed before how difficult milestones can be – especially with a history of PND and our current secondary infertility status – every last time is the last time.  The holidays feel like they’ve gone way too fast and Year 1 and my son turning six-years-old rise up before and break my heart a little.

I’m a planner, as you know, so today I’m putting steps in place to ensure the school year goes off with as little anxiety as possible, for both me and my son.

Get back on school time

We’ve had many a late night and lazy morning during the last four weeks but as we approach the final week of the holidays it might be time to get Caterpillar to bed at his usual time, and for us both to get dressed before midday!

Make some final summer memories

One or two great days out during the last week or two, with lots of photos and mindfulness, is a great way for us to appreciate the summer, each other and take the edge of that return to school.

Get your house in order

I hate housework with the fire of a thousand suns but I can see how “tidy house tidy mind” is going to be beneficial here.  I plan to use some of the next week or so to get our home a little more organised in an effort to reduce mental clutter as well as the physical.

Make plans for the first two weeks of term

I know I’m going to miss Caterpillar fiercely and those first few days are going to feel both peaceful and lonely.  Putting plans in place for the first weeks – anything from working on a project at home to meeting a friend for coffee – will hopefully keep the sad thoughts at bay.

Get your child school-ready with Stick2Me

I’ve recently discovered a great label brand called Stick2Me who are working with me on this post.  Stick2Me create durable, customised labels for everything from lunchboxes and stationery to shirts and shoes.

I love the design options; your child can chose from 18 different themes including dinosaurs, monsters, flamingos and unicorns.  For older children there’s the Grafitti collections which include skater, sports, comic books and more.  There’s Neutral collections for those who don’t want illustrations at all.  All the illustrations are designed by Stick2Me’s creator which gives a real personal feel.

You can then choose the font, size, shape and type of labels (self-adhesive or iron-on) and select a set that suits you best, plus they deliver internationally.  One thing I really like is you can use the self-adhesive labels on clothing, with no ironing required, if you attach to the clothing label.  As an added bonus, Stick2Me give back too by fund-raising for schools, nurseries and other organisations.

For some reason, I find the process of labeling Caterpillar’s things really soothing; I suppose it makes me feel calm and organised!  If you want to lift some of your mental load before school starts visit www.stick2me.net for more details or enter my giveaway below to win a personalised kit for your child.

I hope these tips are helpful and that you and your child have a smooth transition back into school life.

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Disclaimer: This is a collaborative post with Stick2Me; words and opinions are all my own.