diff --git a/mdto/mdto.py b/mdto/mdto.py
index db3a901..f7f8e46 100755
--- a/mdto/mdto.py
+++ b/mdto/mdto.py
@@ -9,7 +9,10 @@
 from pathlib import Path
 from typing import Any, List, TextIO
 
-from . import helpers
+try:
+    from . import helpers  # Package context
+except ImportError:
+    import helpers  # Direct execution
 
 import lxml.etree as ET
 import validators