The World’s Okayest Mom
The truth is, I’m burnt out.
I’m sure many of you can relate. The pressures of being an awesome mom, an amazing wife, a top level employee, an expert financial advisor, a nurse, a mediator, a party planner, a teacher, a chef… The list goes on for days. Moms wear too many hats.
There is so much pressure to outdo yourself. There is pressure to make sure your kids keep up with their peers. Do better than you did last year. Up your game. Don’t forget any appointments. Be at all the practices, be the room mom, be the snack mom… When does it end??
Often, I sacrifice my own health and wellness to make sure my family doesn’t notice how burnt out I truly am.
I’m only hurting myself. I am setting myself up for failure. I cannot continue to outdo myself. There is only so much I can do. I don’t know how to juggle in the literal sense, and I’m beginning to think that I’m not very good at it in a figurative sense, either.
But I continue to try because if I don’t, the guilt I feel is so heavy. If I don’t do my best or if I’m not the best at everything, somebody WILL suffer, right? No, chances are nobody will notice if I don’t perform at my very best. But somebody will suffer if I keep this up. That somebody is me.
Burnout can cause you to feel incredibly tired but unable to sleep. It can make you irritable and moody. It can make you feel sick, and sometimes it can even lower your immune system so you really do get sick. Depression, loss of appetite, overeating, and alcohol dependency are all possible products of burnout.
WHY DO WE DO THIS TO OURSELVES?
Sometimes, I’m just okay at my jobs. Sometimes, my kids have the plainest Mardi Gras shoebox float. Sometimes, my kids birthday parties are just a cake at home. Sometimes, I wing things that I definitely shouldn’t because I was too tired to prepare. Sometimes, the game snack is prepackaged. THIS IS OKAY!
I’m learning, slowly but surely, that I don’t have to be the world’s best mom all the time. There are times that I am just the world’s okayest mom. And I’m learning to be okay with that. Does anyone else notice? Nope. My kids are happy. My husband is happy. My job is going well. And I am feeling better about it all. As I write this even, I can feel some of the tension leaving my body.
Today, my son is at preschool with the okayest (plainest) shoebox float, and I’m surprisingly okay with that. This momma is tired. I did my best.
Do you think my son cares what his float looks like? You be the judge.
