I recently read an article in Newsweek about how American Women have it Wrong. It really struck a chord for me, as I go through a personal struggle of trying to be “perfect.”
Trying to juggle it all: the house, the business, the baby and my own personal sanity, but in the end all I feel is guilt. Where does this guilt come from? Debora Spar in the Newsweek article say it comes from, “Partly from media, partly from society, partly from biology, and partly from our own vastly unrealistic expectations that we have for ourselves.”
I completely agree. I find that I hold myself up to a very high standard. That I should have healthy, gluten free, made from scratch, delicious meals ready at dinnertime, I should be the perfect mother to Maya, breast feeding on demand and ensuring that she grows up health, happy and well-adjusted, a perfect home that is clutter free and always clean, and then time to manage my business and provide for the family, did I mention that I also need to find time to work out and relax?
It can make any person’s head spin. It is just too much, and to add feelings of guilt, really prevents us from truly enjoying our lives and loving and accepting ourselves, with all of our imperfections.
Truth be told, I am getting better. I have already made it clear to my husband that we will most likely be going to out dinner at least 3 times a week, since I can’t cook every meal we eat (and I don’t love cooking), and that we have already hired a housekeeper to come every other week to clean our house. I try to actively confront my feelings of guilt, examine where these feelings come from and then not take them to heart. It is definitely a process. As always, I feel like I am being stretched when things feel uncomfortable. That is a good thing.
Do you feel as though you are doing too much and not doing anything well? Do you have feelings of guilt? How do you overcome your feelings of guilt?
To your health and sanity,
Sharon
