Striking A Balance

Being a woman is no joke especially if you are a wife, a mother, a teacher, a cook, a 24-hour tech support gal, a masseuse, a driver and everything else to your family. Chances are you will be too busy taking care of other people that you end up forgetting about your own needs. I am a bit of everything that I've mentioned above, and trust me, when you aren't careful, things could get out of hand. If you are "all work and no play" you end up losing yourself amid the nitty-gritty of things. Besides no woman can be an effective mother and wife if she isn't a happy woman unless of course she is a docile person--one who seems okay with being pushed around all the time. I must admit that I always pay close attention to the signs of stress because as you go about your day to day chores it's so easy to explode anytime especially if there is much more on your plate than you can handle. So how do I go about it? Here's how:

• I make sure that I am well-rested. This would mean that even if I might have lost some sleep over something, I grab the first opportunity that comes my way to rest or take a quick nap to compensate for the few hours of sleep that I lost.
• I take time to spend some "lone moments" in a quiet corner. This allows me to enjoy a moment of peace. This could be spent reading my favorite book, playing my favorite pocket pc game, watching my favorite show, or listening to my favorite music.
• I make sure that I am well fed. Almost all the time when we get too busy, we forget to eat. To some people they might think it's a good thing. To me it isn't. I'm always in a better mood when I am not starving. And for those times when I become so irritable, the quickest fix to lighten up my mood is food.
• Every now and then when the going gets tough, I make sure that I get out of the house. I could either go to the mall, or visit my favorite places or just see some special friends, or just drive around. A change of scenery from the chaos at home and the chores is always a good thing.
• Talking really helps. Just being able to express how you feel to your loved ones is a good way to let out some steam. It could be just talking to your husband, to your children or calling some important people over the phone.
• I take time to write. Usually at the end of the day, women still have worries about a lot of things. A good way for me to clear my head from worries is to write down things. It really helps. It's a good form of mental ventilation--when you get rid of unpleasant thoughts in your head.
• I make sure that I pamper myself from time to time. Pampering one's self doesn't have to be so costly. With me, I could either go for a soothing massage, get a new haircut or hair color, have a manicure and pedicure service, or maybe dine in my favorite restaurant or splurge on something that I like.

When nothing really helps, I just take a few hours off my responsibilities, openly declare to everyone that I'm officially on leave then I sit in front of my computer, until I'm ready again to deal with the chaos.