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Being a Mom, It’s So Hard Sometimes…

Being A Mom

Being a mom is tough. The devoid of personal time a mom has and the pressure to juggle work and life is beyond what I could have imagined when I was single and childless.

Being a mom is exhausting and life just doesn’t stop. I thought having 1 kid was bad. That was until the 2nd one came along recently and I felt like having 1 kid was child’s play (pun intended)!

The older child is only 2 years old now and still needs tender loving and care. The bills still need to be paid – so I can’t just be a SAHM.

Everyone expects that you know what you’re doing all the time. The pressure I put on myself to care for my child is also tremendous.

It doesn’t matter if it’s your first or third, you’re still learning the art of being a mom every day.

The challenge with having a second child (2 years apart from your first) is the nasty terrible twos and the unavoidable jealousy the older one will feel.

There are days we all just want some time out, a little me time for ourselves.

I was sharing with my colleague that the lack of personal time at home is quite insane… I just want to cut my nails and there is simply no good time to do until past midnight when both kids are asleep. I also can never take more than 5 mins for a shower.

They both look like angels when they are asleep. That’s when I tiptoe off to brush my teeth, eat a snack, grab a drink and really stretch out. I don’t last long awake because I’m always really tired.

I’ve been up breastfeeding at 12am, 4am and 7am everyday like clockwork for the past month. Technically in a mom’s world, that’s not so bad if not for the fact that I have returned to my 9am – 6pm job for the past month. My hungry baby needed milk and my husband just sleeps through it all.

Some nights I am so sleepy I don’t even know what I am doing.
Some nights I accidentally push my nipple into Nathen’s face instead of his mouth when he roots.
Some nights I doze off while expressing milk.
Some nights I accidentally drop his basket of essentials (wipes, diapers, clothes) on the floor and I just leave it where I dropped it because I am too darn tired to pick it all up.

And when I wake up for work the next day, my husband wonders why didn’t I note down when I last fed Nathen. WHAT?

Having enough

motherhood

At time, I really feel super drained. Like when I have work to do, and my boobs are leaking, and Nathen is crying and refusing to breastfeed even though he’s hungry, and Daniel gets into a crazy tantrum, and my husband’s scolding him… – all that chaos and noise

That’s when I really feel like walking away from this madness. Why does there need to be so much shouting and crying?

I felt like a jerk feeling that way. :( I love my kids. I do.

I just reached a point where I had enough of giving all of myself.

We’re humans and we’re mothers.

But moms, I want to tell you – It’s okay to have days that you don’t feel good enough. Don’t feel bad if there are days when you want to have a moment to yourself. Don’t feel bad if you feel like you want to run away from it all. Sometimes the goal isn’t perfection. It’s just to keep the kids alive.

You can do this. We can do this. Some women seem to have it all, or so we think. Some women don’t. I know I don’t.

Life challenges us daily. If you fail today, take a break and try again tomorrow. I tell myself everyday that it will get better. And better I hope it will be soon. :)

**

Read also:

My Motherhood Experience

I became a mom at 29 and my husband and I both live in Singapore. Juggling work and family is a daily challenge. We rely heavily on each other and on our helper. Here’s sharing my motherhood experiences where you’ll find a list of posts on my hopes & fears as a mom. I hope reading it will uplift you and give you a sense of camaraderie.

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9 Comments

  1. Jae
    August 24, 2016 / 12:45 am

    Thank u for sharing your story. Indeed as mothers, we need to set realistic expectations and work within our means. I am planning for no.2 but I am not sure if I can manage 2. Jiayou all mummies!

    • Ju Ann
      Author
      August 25, 2016 / 9:51 am

      Thank you for popping by Jae. You know, we women always think we can’t do it, but we always find a way to manage don’t we? :)

  2. Winnie
    August 24, 2016 / 8:37 am

    It WILL get better. I have a pair of twin boys who are 4 years old now. The first two years were tough. I went went to work after maternity leave and the boys went infant care. And because of that, they caught bugs and fell sick every other week. They passed the bugs to us and we fell sick too. So the sick caring for the sick, and this cycle pretty much went on for about two years. We had a helper then but still cared for the boys ourselves. As you can imagine, there were MANY times when I just lost it and wanted to give up.

    As they grow older and become more independent, your life will get a little better though you will still face (new) challenges. Whatever it is, know that every phase is but a passing one and just live everyday as it comes and treasure the time wif your little ones. For it passes by too quickly, and I so miss my little babies now :).

    Gambate!

    • Ju Ann
      Author
      August 25, 2016 / 9:50 am

      Wow Winnie, you’re such a champ. Thank you for telling me it WILL get better!! There is hope!! Haha

  3. Sharon
    August 24, 2016 / 8:26 pm

    Thanks for being so real and honest! I felt like I was reading my daily journal (except i’m a FTM with a newborn under a month), but the frustration balancing the tension between loving the child and wanting time for self is so real.

    I’m encouraged that “hey! you didn’t stop at 1”, this shows that “things will get better”, as all mummies I’ve talked to have said :)

    Something a friend said and I’m learning is to “count my blessings” instead of “counting the long days”

    jiayou! things will get better ;)

    • Ju Ann
      Author
      August 25, 2016 / 9:50 am

      Thank you for popping by. I like the “count my blessings” advice!

  4. Yvonne
    August 25, 2016 / 12:06 am

    You’re a good mom just by trying your best. Nobody’s perfect. It’s the toughest job in the world but you’ve been one of the chosen to do it. That’s how special you are. ?

    • Ju Ann
      Author
      August 25, 2016 / 9:48 am

      Hi Yvonne!! haha! Thank you :)

  5. Harv
    August 25, 2016 / 2:05 pm

    I hear you. I’m a SAHM of an almost 6 month old and I can completely relate. Thank you for writing this post. ?