Happy mums, happy bubs, was the message at Cambrai Early Learning Centre at Engadine, which hosted its first mothers' wellness tea this month.
The idea is simple - to encourage mums to gather around for some bickies and slices with a cuppa or two.
It began after one of the centre's educators, Prue Bayliss, opened up about her personal challenges with being a mother - the occasional breakdown, the build up of stress, and the reluctance to talk about it.
Although she said she had great support from family and colleagues, she thought how many other mothers were going through the same thing?
This paved the path for the wellness tea, so encourage mums to socialise and have a chat - about their kids, and sometimes significantly, about something other than their children.
"As educators we often see mums frantically dropping their children off with little to no sleep, just trying to do their best and get through the day," she said.
"It's just what is expected from society, and we don't talk about how hard this can be. As many of our mothers said during our conversations, 'you just do what you have to do'. But we feel that we need to change this stigma, and make it OK for mums to ask for help."
The group recently shared stories of their challenges - from lack of sleep, to behaviour and mental health.
"This was a great opportunity for mothers to network, build friendships, give and receive advice and just have a good vent without judgement," Mrs Bayliss said.
Mothers were also give pamper packages that contained massage, nail and beauty vouchers, candles, bath salts and face masks, donated by businesses that supported the cause including Devine Eventions, Anne Marie Cookies, Something Found, Joanne's Nails, Sami's Brows and Nails, Alcoholder, Siam Serene Massages, Sister Brows, QuayLending and Arcade Pharmacy.
Staff hope to expand the initiative, by inviting professionals to visit and share their advice on how to launch self-care and coping strategies, plus the offering of a relaxing yoga lesson.
"We will also be extending this to our fathers in the future as well," Mrs Bayliss said.
