I am going to get very honest here. As a single mom and business owner summer is the most difficult time of the year. A time where I feel like I have done nothing well because I’ve been trying to do everything well. Time and fun with my kids between lazer focused attention to my business and my clients. Not to mention house, yard and pets who are all looking for extra attention during this season.
By August I am exhausted. Fully overwhelmed. Anxious about all that has been done and all that is left to do in the last 2 weeks before school starts. Walking around with the nagging feeling that no one is happy with the attention they have received in the last few months but knowing that I have given all I had to give.
This mom is exhausted.
Every year at this time I can’t figure out why my heart starts racing, my mind is swirling and my nerves are raw. I have given all I have and it never feels good enough. And each year I am baffled by what’s causing all of these feelings. About August 1 I realize this is the cycle of summer.
As fall arrives, kids go back to school and our new schedule settles in my heart will also settle, my anxiety will ease and I will be able to focus again wishing for more time and the “lazy days” of summer.
This is my annual cycle. I fear that it is the cycle for many. So as we move through August I invite all of us to extend a little more empathy. Lend support if you can. Accept support if you need it.
Today I am going to extend myself some grace. Take a few quiet moments to reflect on the summer and some of the wins both personally and professionally. Stay as present as possible to ease the anxiety of the future and the remorse of the past. I am also going to reach out to a few working moms that I know have their own summer cycle and give them some words of encouragement.
It takes a village.