The Real Reason I’m Always Tired
I’m tired. I’m tired all the time. The only time I have energy is after my morning coffee has kicked in, and even then it’s only for about four hours. I suffer from what many moms suffer from, the superwoman syndrome that has plagued society for the past 20-30 years. We come from a generation where it was drilled in our heads that we women could literally do anything and everything. Maybe our parents had good intentions with these ‘I Am Woman, Hear Me Roar’ speeches, but the truth is, we can’t do it all.
Doing it all is darn near impossible, and everyday we run ourselves ragged trying to be Super Mom, Super Wife and Super Friend. Through all of these Super titles, we lose ourselves. We mom’s wake up at the butt crack of dawn to prepare for the day, cooking, putting away last night’s laundry, and packing everyone’s lunches. We schedule everyone’s appointments, including our husbands. We work really hard at our jobs away from the house, only to come back home and work some more. Who’s going to clean up the house when your offspring do a half tail job of getting their chores done? Don’t look at dad, he’s tired from working all day.
Now this is not to say that dad’s don’t help, because they do. This is to say that mom’s feel the need to prove themselves by doing more and feeling guilty about asking for help. I know several bad-ace mama’s that go to work daily, go to school, and manage to keep their kids alive and not appearing to be neglected. I’m not sure if we even know how to work off of a full tank of energy. Even in high school, we were doing too much and not taking enough time for ourselves. I remember, running track, working and still staying on top of my homework and making time for friends. When track was over, I spent endless hours at cheer practice and camps before our focused switched to games. I can honestly say that I don’t vividly recollect having down time after the age of 10.
When people ask why I’m tired, sometimes I just reply with “I have three kids,” but the truth is, I have three kids. I have a full time job. I have a husband. I have an internship. I have graduate school. I have learned to function on an insufficient amount of sleep because I was told I could have it all. I believe I CAN have it all (well most of it), and though I run myself past empty on a daily basis, one day I won’t have to. I will finish school, it’s temporary. You will get through the toddler years, it’s temporary. We will learn to take time for ourselves, because life is temporary. So, I say all of this to make the point of finding time for you. Taking time for yourself gives you the mental refresher you need to be fully present in your other relationships. Pull on your active wear and be active. Take a bubble bath. Go for a long walk. Nourish the relationship you have with yourself.
~J~
