I’m an Eczema Caregiver. This Is How I Still Make Time For Myself

My name is Nitin Dogra and, in addition to living with eczema myself, I am the parent of two young boys who live with eczema. What I’ve learned is that making time for myself is important not only for me but also for my sons.

These are the times of day when I find it helpful to meditate

I try to get at least 30 minutes of daily meditation time. I try to do a short meditation as soon as I wake up; next I try to meditate for 10-15 minutes after dropping them off at day care and starting work; and lastly, I end my day by meditating lying down and going to sleep. I usually also squeeze in another short 10 minute session during the day as well.   

How meditation helps me juggle the needs of everyone in our family

Meditation helps me to put wisdom into practice. It guides me to make every moment of the day as a meditative act. I’m not able to do that all the time, but putting an effort to be more aware and mindful has led me to make changes in how I think, act, speak and perform my daily duties. It teaches me to be a more conscious dad and remember that I can only teach my kids what I practice. They will not follow what I say or instruct to them to do. They will follow my behaviors. So in a way, meditation helps me to juggle the needs of my kids and my wife in a better way.

For parents who say, “I don’t have time to meditate,” this is what I tell them

We all find time for things that really matter to us. Say brushing your teeth, eating your meals or going to work. Once you understand why, making time becomes easier. It’s quite possible you will have to drop another activity off your calendar, but then you are making time for something that will give you rich dividends in the long run. It will help both your mental and physical health. There is a very famous Zen quote: “Meditate for an hour every day unless you are too busy. In that case meditate for two hours.” Once you learn the art of meditation, you can meditate as you walk or clean your dishes or drive your car with absolute attention and awareness. 

I wish more parents knew this about taking care of children with eczema

We can only take care of them better if we take care of our own mind and bodies. And it starts with good nutrition and becoming more aware of what we put into our mind and body all day long. We don’t have to be enslaved to our existing conditioning of the mind and body; we can take charge of our mind so that we can be more present for our children in their daily needs and activities.

These are my favorite things about being a dad

I love kissing and hugging my twin boys. I love to hear their crazy imaginative stories and answers to my questions. I love when they say “bye” to me while dropping them off at the daycare. I love waking them up in the morning and I also love hearing to how their day went as we go to sleep.