Like most of you single parents, I try to keep it together; I really don’t want to live an exhausted life of constant chaos so I do try to eat right, get enough rest, balance my life, etc. Unfortunately, there just seem to be times when all of that isn’t possible. I do get overwhelmed and overextended and I am the first person to get crabby about it (I am NOT one of those people who love to be busy or thrive in crisis, quite the opposite.) It definitely does not help when others tell me how puffy my eyes are, how tired I look, or ask me if something is wrong. It is one thing to feel exhausted, it is quite another to know that I look terrible too!
I have tried all the tricks—tea bags and cucumber disks and special lotions—at some point, it just becomes something extra that I don’t have time for. If I had time to rest with tea bags on my eyes, why wouldn’t I just take a good nap which is what I really need anyway? I know in most cases that people mean well, or at least that most of the people mean well (there might be those who really feel compelled to tell me how horrid I look for less than sweet reasons) but I KNOW it, I had to look at myself in the mirror first thing before anyone else had to see me!
What this single parent would like to see is that instead of pointing out how frazzled, exhausted, puffy-eyed, or droopy I look (or asking me point blank if I’ve been crying or someone died) those people offered to bring me a cup of coffee, help with a project, or take me out for nachos during the really stressful weeks—THAT would be helpful!
Also: Tending to Family without Losing Ground on the Work Front