I came home from work with my head pounding in way that I thought it was going to explode. It was a stress headache (shocker) and no amount of water and Starbucks was making it feel better. Tonight was “gym” night so I switched right into mom-mode and started getting dinner ready. Dinner was in the crockpot so I didn’t have to do much to get our meal together. While the family sat like sloths watching TV in the other room I begrudgingly heated up vegetables. I was getting more bitter by the moment that everyone was relaxing and I was suffering from this cruddy headache still “working”. I was tired, I was cranky, and I was ready to tell everyone how ungrateful they were for not helping their poor ailing mom/wife in the kitchen. Luckily I had the sense to make their plates (like they couldn’t have done it themselves) and trudge back to my bedroom. The volcano erupting in my head was not relenting so I crawled under the covers- the gym would still be there tomorrow.
Not even five minutes after I closed my eyes my five year old ran into the room crying that his sister hit him. I was the only one left in the house who might feel sorry for him apparently. He tried to go eat dinner but was having an emotional night himself and ended up back in bed with me. He immediately snuggled up into the crook of my arm and was asleep in under a minute.
My head was still pounding but I already felt better. Just snuggling and being loved by this little guy who needed me calmed my mind and let me sleep too.
I didn’t sleep long, but woke up to a silent house and no headache. My little guy stirred and I hoped he wouldn’t wake up just yet because I was loving this time with him. My kids are growing faster than I ever could have imagined and it won’t be long before he’s just too big to cuddle up like this.
I realize that naps are not a luxury that most people are accustomed to. I know I’m not. But I also know that there are plenty of times in life- whether it be stress at work, school projects, kids activities, relationships, or whatever it is that wears us down- that sometimes, we just need to pause and hit our reset button.
I was so happy that I didn’t perform the “poor me” speech I had ready earlier because I would have regretted it when I woke. I didn’t get in my workout at the gym, but this time mind had to come over body.
Next time you’ve hit your limit- pause. Can you miss this one track meet, can you eat out tonight instead of making dinner, can you cancel your weekend plans that are stressing you out? Pause and decide that your sanity and wellness need to be taken care of too. And then do it. Amazingly, the world kept spinning while I napped- it doesn’t need me 24/7 after all.
