Effective Tips and Tricks to Stay Positive No Matter What

So who isn't inspired by the wonderful Katie Piper? We spoke to her about trying to juggle parenting and work, how important body image is to her, and her tactics for keeping her family healthy.

How's married life? What does marriage mean to you?

The wedding feels like so long ago now – but we're very happy and still very much in love, which is always good for the first year of marriage, it will be one year on November 6th.

I used to think it was really important for me to get married first before having a child but we were so happy not married. For me it was more like feeling like a family unit – but it's really individual to each person.

Family is really important to me. My family have been a really big part of not just my childhood but my adult life too, so I really want to replicate that life with my daughter and husband. We spend a lot of time together and we're each other's best friends. On the weekends we try and not do work and instead make time for each other and our daughter. It's all about the quality of time you spend together.

You're an inspiration to many, how do you handle a bad day?

For me, it's important to realise that it's normal to have depressing days or even weeks, it's normal to be angry and get fed up with things. I think through my charity (Katie Piper Foundation) I've found that a lot of people get these emotions as they're bottling up feelings – so I think acknowledging it and recognising that it's happening is the key.

I'm a really visual person and I use a lot of quotes to help me stay positive, including famous sayings and mantras, saying these out loud really help for me.

You're a working mum – how do you try and balance the two?

A lot of working mums will agree with me – you're always going to get that guilt. But you have to remember that you can't beat yourself up about it, you can't be everything to everyone and you have to prioritise.

It helps that my husband and I are both self-employed – and we both just try and be mindful of each other. When I'm not working I try not to be on my phone as I'm not giving my full attention to the people I'm with.

I also try and be really organised and sensible with my time. It's easy to not be in the moment. Looking at social media or shopping online, while your with friends or family, will only end up having a negative impact on your relationships.

How do you stay body confident?

I try and keep it real. I go online a lot as I love social media, so can get sucked into thinking 'Oh my god that girl looks amazing' – I have to remind myself that things are edited and there's good lighting on photoshoots. So I try and take myself back and look at the reality of a situation.

I also try and have a balanced diet and balanced exercise, but I don't limit myself – I love pasta and chocolate, so will never stop myself from having it.

How do you make sure you and your family stay healthy?

Cooking is a family hobby of ours. We shop together at markets and fresh food stores, cook together and look for recipes together because we want to make it an actual activity. We also make sure we sit down and eat together round the table. I think as a family this is really important.

As Belle is now two and a half she's started to have an opinion about what she eats, but also about her routine. You think it would be easy to get her to do things like brush her teeth, but its not that simple. So we try and make her part of the process, using things like sticker charts to award her when she's eaten healthy food or cleaned her teeth. We also went to IKEA with her and bought her a little step, and we incorporate the dinosaur from Peppa Pig into her teeth cleaning routine – she loves to roar like a dinosaur while she cleans them.

What would you say is the toughest part of parenting?

Multitasking – trying to keep Belle in the routine of cleaning her teeth, brushing her hair and dressing, as well as getting ready myself. It's tempting to cut down your routine, in the morning and even in the evening, you've come home, cooked your dinner and you just want to chill out. However I really feel routine is important, so I just try and stay calm and you keep her disciplined.

How will you try and protect your daughter from social media as she grows up?

The way I protect her now is that I don't put her on social media, she's so young and she doesn't have a voice or a choice yet. But let's hope all of it is out of fashion in 10 years and I won't have to worry about it.

Via