Northampton mindfulness coach hopes to give busy mums a helping hand with new book

Sheena Tanna-Shah can add another job title to her already-long list: mindfulness coach, optometrist, nutritionist, life coach, meditation practitioner... and now author.

Perfectly Imperfect Mum: A Fun and Inspirational Guide for Busy Mums to Staying Mindful and Thriving Amid the Chaos brings together everything Sheena has learned having dealt with crippling anxiety while raising her two daughters in Northampton.

"It's really exciting, it's been a year and a half of hard work but this is a dream come true," she told the Chronicle & Echo today (Thursday, September 17).

"It's been really hard trying to find a publisher and editing and all the other background stuff, plus having three other jobs which I've had to juggle.

"But I got the physical copies yesterday and I got to see it in the flesh and that was amazing - a really special feeling."

Sheena, 36, struggled with her mental health for most of her life but only realised she had to change her ways when she had her first child nine years ago.

After discovering mindfulness and meditation, Sheena went from anxiety taking over her life to running two businesses, still working as an optometrist and loving being a mum.

"I knew I had to get stronger mentally and physically so I did mindset training, I focused on my nutrition and did more exercise and slowly, day-by-day I got better," she said.

"I wanted to do a book to support the wellbeing of other mums as it can be both rewarding and challenging being a mother and if you don't put your wellbeing first, it can be hard and you start to spiral."

Perfectly Imperfect Mum is structured around 20 everyday scenarios, with each situation featuring a mindfulness and motivational tip, a simple, nutritious recipe and a yoga pose or movement to destress.

This combination of mindfulness tools allows mums to reset themselves, helping them to live in the moment instead of checking off the next item on the to-do list, Sheena hopes.

"As a life coach and mindfulness practitioner, I wanted to use everything I have learned about health and nutrition to create almost a pack for mums with everything they need to get through tough scenarios," she said.

"So whether it's feeling like all you're doing is making dinner or being a taxi driver or being judged for your weight - there should be something in this book to make you feel better and focus on what's important."

Sheena said she has had lots of positive feedback ahead of the launch on September 28, including from Kristina Rihanoff, the former Strictly Come Dancing professional and co-founder of Soo Yoga in Northampton.

As for her future career as an author, she is focusing on making this book a success but imagines Perfectly Imperfect could become a series, with editions for fathers and children potentially.

While the book was written before coronavirus took over the world, Sheena believes its teachings are even more relevant now with many parents having to juggle working from home with home-schooling during the lockdown.

But she emphasises it is not all seriousness but also includes funny anecdotes from her years of motherhood and dealing with all of those stresses to hopefully bring a smile to the readers' faces.

"It's not all serious, I like to think it's a laugh out loud book too to make people not feel alone," she said