ANDREA McLEAN ON ‘ME-TIME’

The best thing she bought during lockdown, Andrea McLean tells us, is a “Do Not Disturb” sign. The author, life coach, former Loose Women star and This Girl Is On Fire founder is a huge advocate of me-time and says we need to start looking after ourselves more.

“The biggest hurdle that parents need to overcome – and in particular mums – is the whole idea that me-time is some kind of treat,” Andrea, the mother of Finlay, 19, and Amy, 14, tells hello!.

“Me-time is time spent looking after yourself and if you don’t look after yourself, how on earth are you supposed to look after anybody else? So you should come first.”

She continues: “The best investment you can make is buying a ‘Do Not Disturb’ sign.

“I bought one during lockdown and sometimes I put it on the bedroom door if I just need a bit of space to myself. The kids know not to knock or come in. Set aside 15 minutes – which is one per cent of your day.

“For me, I like to meditate, so I tell everyone I need some quiet in the house for those 15 minutes and they understand that.

“It’s so funny: I can literally feel the whole house is on tenterhooks, waiting for me to finish. But mums need to stop this whole idea of putting yourself last. Let everyone know that you’re a fully functioning human being and you need to do this.

“It’s also crucial to let children take some responsibility for sorting themselves out.

“One of the things I said to both of my children, when they started secondary school, was that I will never tell them to do their homework because it’s not me who gets in trouble; it’s them.

“They needed to learn that responsibility for themselves and their grades.”