Balance...

Wow, it has been a really long time since I have blogged. I have been struggling with the age-old problem of work/home balance. School counseling has always been a demanding job.  However, this year seems to be infinitely more challenging.

There are many times that I exhaust so much energy with the students I work with that I don't have enough for my own children (and husband). How unfair for my own kiddos that they have half of a mom most days. My struggle has come to a head since right before Thanksgiving.  There were some VERY physically and emotionally draining days/weeks at school, my kiddos at home were having some behavior difficulties (duh...emotionally absent mom), there were over 30 people coming to my house for Thanksgiving, my sister's family was staying with us, my parents were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary (wow!), I began thinking heavily about entering a doctoral program, and the straw that broke the camel's back...my daughter got sick followed by the rest of us! AHHHHHHHHH!

I know this may sound like whining, but I KNOW there are many women who struggle with balance. I thought that if I am open and honest about my difficulties, maybe I can help someone else. I know there are men that struggle with this, too, but I can only speak from a woman's point of view.

Counselors are trained to help others with challenges of life and emotions. Unfortunately we often forget about our own emotional and physical needs or feel guilty when we do things for ourselves.

Well, I am determined to get this balance thing down (or at least managed) so I can feel less stressed and more effective at school AND home.

I will be blogging about this journey for awhile because I know it is a process. Don't worry, I will also begin to blog about school counseling "stuff" again, too.

Until then, I will keep working on my beast....BALANCE!