Mothering in a Pandemic

How many mothers feel pushed to the brink during this time?  How many mothers feel like a jack of all trades and master of none?  I had a mother tell me that she felt like she wasn’t enough.  She said she was being pulled on all sides, from her job, to her kids, to her spouse and felt the walls were closing in on her, so much so that she wanted to run away.  After our conversation, I really started to think how many moms have felt or are feeling this way currently.  It seems that the more you do, the more is being asked of you.  Its almost to the point where you have very little time for yourself.  If this is you and you are experiencing this, know that you are not alone in these feelings, which I hope brings some sense of consolation.   What I suggested to this mom and have had to tell myself also are these three things:

1.       Give yourself grace and know that your good is good enough.  You can’t give from an empty cup, so instead of internalizing, celebrate how you’ve managed or manage to keep things going on all fronts.

2.       Ask for what you need.  Ask your spouse for more support or help or whatever is you need.  Ask or tell your kids what you need them to do to take some of the load off of you.  I tell my kids all the time, I’m not your maid, clean up behind yourself.

3.       Get away for a day, two, or three.  Sometimes, alone time is needed to refresh and encourage yourself.