Manchester mums will officially suffer the most stressful day of the year tommorrow caused by the long summer holidays but actress Terri Dwyer is on a mission to help mothers tackle the pressure.
The ex-Hollyoaks star and presenter on This Morning is now involved with soft drinks manufacturer Royal Crown Cola’s Summer of Stress campaign, which helps mums relieve the pressure of the long summer break.
The campaign aims to support the one in three mums that find the school holidays a challenging time of year and mother-of-two Terri has helped raise awareness by surprising weekly shoppers last weekend at a Manchester Asda to share much needed advice.
Terri said: “If you’re one of the many mums feeling the heat this summer, the most important thing to remember is that you shouldn’t feel guilty about finding the holidays stressful.
“According to research by RC Cola, you are not alone.
“In fact 42% of us say that our family dynamic becomes more chaotic and stressful during this time and surely this is to be expected when our daily routines are put on hold.”
As school holidays draw to a close mums have often exhausted all entertainment options which can leave them feeling guilty.
Terri’s best piece of advice was to remember that money doesn’t have to be spent to keep children happy.
“Sometimes you just need to stick them in front of some glue and glitter,” she said.
Summer holidays being an expensive time of year, added to the stress of the ‘school uniform shop’ can leave households in all sorts of financial problems.
According to RC Cola’s research the average family will spend £2,102.16 per child keeping them entertained during the summer holidays.
The survey revealed that more than half the women asked were forced to find extra money to pay for the summer spending by either working overtime or borrowing cash.
Often families with younger children find summer holidays more challenging.
“My three year old needs more structure to a day than my seven year old,” Terri said
“I definitely think it gets easier as they get older.”
Ally Whitehead, Brand Manager for RC Cola said: “Keeping all the family entertained on a budget is no mean feat and we felt it was important that busy mums had a little time for themselves too.
“The SOS campaign rewards mums for their hard work while giving advice on how to stay calm over the summer, we will be organising free activities, prize giveaways and lots of top tips.”
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