Mothers today juggle more tasks, work longer hours, and sleep less than their own mothers did. Yet the self-healing revolution has overlooked the most significant issue in the lives of some twenty million women: how to cope with the relentless, sometimes overwhelming, stresses of raising young children in the twenty-first century.

Rick Hanson, Ph.D and Jan Hanson, L.Ac. , have written many colums to help a mom take care of herself while she takes care of her family. Be sure to visit often as this area will be expanding to offer more than 100 colums that will be searchable by keyword for easy navigation.

How to Nurture a Mother:

• The Marathon of Motherhood
  When my friends without kids tell me they're "so busy," I have to laugh quietly to myself. Juggling two children, two mortgages, and two jobs, I have to run fast just to stand still. It all often seems like an incredible grind. I drop into bed exhausted, and then rev up the engines yet again when the alarm goes off in the morning. I feel a growing need for some sense of perspective. Otherwise, what's the point? No doubt, I love my children SO MUCH. But what IS the point? Just a grind until they're launched themselves? And then when my daughter becomes a mom herself, she just gets to go through it all over again?

• Swimming Upstream
  When I think back to my own mom, she always seemed so on top of things. I feel dismayed and guilty that I'm not handling things as well and feel a lot more frazzled than she seemed to be.

• Gratitude
  I've been thinking lately that I need to focus more on the ways my glass is half full rather than half empty ­ otherwise, I feel down and cranky. Any ideas?

• How a Mother Gets Depleted
  Before having kids, I had a lot of energy and felt very healthy. But now, with a 4 year old and a baby, I'm run down, I get colds frequently, and my menstrual cycle has gotten more intense. My doctor's sympathetic but says I'm fine. What do you think?

• 10 Reasons to Take Good Care of a Mother
  It's funny: during my pregnancy, I took really good care of myself plus got a lot of attention and support from my doctor, husband, and relatives. Even strangers would stop me in the market and remind me to get lots of rest. But now, a year after Allie was born, I feel like I've fallen off of everybody's radar. It's like you're expected to do life - go to the job, do housework, drive around, shop, pay bills, get gas, etc. - just like before, as if the infant you're still super responsible for is not a factor at all. But she's a HUGE factor, of course! I think about her all the time, I'm the person who mainly takes care of her when I'm not at work, I still get up at night and don't sleeep that well, and I feel, honestly, more and more run down. And she's just a year old! Where is this going, and why doesn't anybody seem to notice?!

• Natural Antidepressants
  I've been feeling down lately. Things that ought to be so nice are just blah, I'm really irritable, it's easy to get teary, and I feel SO worn out.

• Fats That Are Good for a Mother
  I always thought fat was bad, but now I'm reading about "good fats." What should I do?

• Good Nutrition (Part I)
  Everybody tells me to eat better, but I am SO busy!

• Good Nutrition (Part II)
  Can you give me some details about feeding myself and my family better?

• Boosting Your Immune System
  Since having kids, I've been getting colds much more often, plus I developed a chronic rash that my doctor says is an autoimmune condition. Why is this happening to me? And what can I do?

• 10 Ways to Lower Stress
  I've got a two-year-old plus a newborn and I was telling my own mom how stressed out I was. She interrupted and said, "That's just mothering, you may as well get used to it." Then she changed the subject, as if she were passing down some unwritten rule of motherhood: I suffered, and so should you.

• Taking In the Good Stuff
  I get to the end of a long day and I feel just used up and sort of empty....

• Finding Your Footing
  Obviously I know what I'm supposed to be doing hour to hour in a day, but in terms of the big picture, I feel like everything got turned kind of upside down since I became a mom, like where I was headed in life -- and this has all gotten more confusing since I went back to work . . .

• Letting Go
  By the end of the day, I feel frazzled and chock full of pent up feelings and thoughts. I don't want to let all that out on my kids or my husband - and I hate it when I do - so do you know any ways to get rid of this stuff without exploding?!

• This fall, our youngest starts first grade, so all three kids will be in elementary school. I'm starting to think about Life After Children, or maybe just Life After Summer Vacation. It's as chaotic as ever, but somehow the kids need me less. They're more off on their own, my husband and I go to work each day, and we are all so busy. There is so much to do! I'm totally taken up with mom/worker/wife. When things are quiet for a minute I sometimes ask myself "Is this it? Is this the point?"

• Making It Work to Stay Home from Work
  I love my time with Josh (3) and Sam (9 months), but I miss talking with the people at work and using my mind in a different way. I don't really want to get a job, I just want some kind of change at home.

• Dealing with Insomnia
  Rachel, our 11-month-old, is now sleeping (mostly) through the night (yes!). But I'm not. I fall asleep OK, but wake around 3 or 4 am (when Rachel used to), toss and turn for a few hours, and then maybe get another hour of sleep before the alarm clock goes off.

• Getting More Sleep
  Our twins are one year old, but they are still wakng up a lot at night, and it usually falls to me to deal with them. What can I do before I go out of my mind with sleep deprivation?

• When You're Feeling Blue
  I've been feeling down lately. Things that ought to be really enjoyable are just blah, I'm more irritable than usual, and all the changes I've gone through since becoming a mom a year ago seem to have finally caught up with me.

Healing Painful Feelings:

• Sometimes I get so mad at my kids! I'm under enough pressure as it is. First, they don't do what I say and I get a little mad, then they fuss and I get madder and start yelling, voices get louder and louder, and finally they start screaming -- which sends me over the top. Sometimes I'll just lose it, pick them up and drop them on their bed, slam their bedroom door, and scream at them myself. Yes, they were misbehaving but I feel bad afterwards. And sometimes the first look in their eyes when they see me has fear in it, like they are wary.

Exercise and Good, Easy Nutrition:

• In this column and the next one, we discuss perhaps the most fundamental thing that a mother can do for her long-term health and well-being: get proper nutrition.

• This column continues our current series on how to promote the well-being of mothers. Naturally, fathers and children need well-being, too, but in our experience, it is usually the mother who is the most stressed and depleted person in the family. By improving her well-being from negative to at least neutral - and then going further into positive wellness - she's able to be at her best for herself, her children, and her partner. The previous column began discussing the single most important way to nurture a mother, through good nutrition, and this one completes our summary of that vital subject.

• Quick and Easy Protein
  What can I do to feel less run down in the afternoon? Maybe I need to eat differently, but I'm so busy here's a typical day: bagel and coffee for breakfast, salad for lunch, granola bar (or leftover peanut butter and jelly sandwich!) for a snack, and spaghetti for dinner.

• Exercise for Busy Moms
  Everybody tells you to exercise these days, but who's got the time for it?!

• Being Careful with Sugar
  I'm so busy that often I'll have coffee for breakfast and then a donut mid-morning. But then I crash a few hours later - plus I'm gaining weight. And I worry about my kids: how to get them to not live for sweets?

• Eating Right
  I want to set a good example for my children about eating right, but honestly, it's hard to find time for anything but "convenience" foods and snacks. Plus I'd love to get rid of some of the extra pounds I've acquired since having kids.

• Fats That Are Good for a Mother
  I always thought fat was bad, but now I'm reading about "good fats." What should I do?

• Losing Weight
  It's three years since I became a mom, and I just can't seem to lose about fifteen extra pounds Over the years, .I've tried the usual diets, and they maybe work for awhile, but I always go back to wherever I started. Plus now there's Cassie and we're so busy that it just happens that a lot of the time I grab a bagel or a slice of cold pizza and call it a meal.

• Your Holistic Medicine Chest
  I'm really nervous about this flu season, and the baby and the rest of us getting sick. Besides getting a flu shot, what can we do?

• Super Nutrients for Mothers
  I'm not sick or anything, but I sure feel run down. What can I do - that's simple and easy, since I've got an infant, a toddler, and a preschooler (yikes!) - to feel better?

• Low Carbs for Mothers
  We've got two kids, ages 1 and 3, and I'm about 20 pounds heavier today than I was before my first pregnancy. I feel run-down and often a little blue, so I "feed my sweet tooth" probably more than is good for me. I'm a little worried about where all this is going . . . .

• Preventing Colds and Flus
  Both my toddler and his big sister seem to have a runny nose half the year, particularly during the winter. And their dad and I also have a cold more often than we'd like. Any advice?

• Mothers and PMS
  Since becoming a mom, I've begun experiencing more intense PMS. Is this normal? And what can I do?

• Preventing Type II Diabetes
  We've got two kids, ages 1 and 3, and I'm about 20 pounds heavier today than I was before my first pregnancy. I feel run-down and often a little blue, so I "feed my sweet tooth" probably more than is good for me. I'm a little worried about where all this is going . . . .