Does anyone else feel like they are living under pressure?

I feel the pressure to be a great mom.
I feel the pressure to be a great wife.
I feel the pressure to be great at my job.
I feel the pressure to be a great daughter, sister, friend, neighbor, colleague…

You get the point.

This strategy works for me until it just doesn’t anymore and I break. Today was one of the days where I broke.

Here’s the thing, guys. The leaves are falling. I don’t know why I was so dumbstruck in the parking lot after work today when I found myself standing on a smattering of leaves thinking ‘when the heck did this happen?’ How did I miss the fact that we are already staring October in the face?

Those who know me well know I don’t slow down. I have to be busy for 99% of the day (that last 1% is reserved for Netflix binge-watching when collapsing on the couch with a glass of wine). But, here is the thing: things keep going. And time is flying by.

I am starting to wonder what would happen if I lowered my own expectations for myself. Like really allowed myself to slow down. What would that even be like?

Would it be the worst thing if the laundry stayed in the pile for another day? (I think everyone still has at least 1 pair of clean underwear). Or, what if I left work an hour early and beat the kids home just to sit on the couch? No one would say I wasn’t good at my job anymore.

Let’s face it. I can tell you 1,000 reasons why I am feeling under pressure but the truth is I supply all the pressure. I know I am not alone in this. Countless numbers of you have commiserated with us in this community about the pressures of being the best of everything for everyone else. It’s like a syndrome so many of us moms have.

So, today, as I stand on this pile of leaves I am asking myself, what if I try to be the best of everything for me?

I broke today.

So, tomorrow I will start again and maybe, just maybe, I can be kinder and more gentle with myself.

Join me?