We all have hopes and/or resolutions about every new year, and this one is no different. Even if it’s not something you’ve said out loud, there is that inner voice that must have said something about how you’re finally going to change something to be able to find joy in life again. And, I completely understand that because it is in our nature to want to evolve, right?
So, here we are in “a period of winter” when it’s grey and miserable. And just like so many mums that I’ve spoken to, you’re stuck in a rut… again. You can’t help but still feel hopeless, fed up, stressed out, overwhelmed – just done! Completely opposite of what you’d been hoping for. Because you hoped that you would find joy again.
If this is you, let me just take you back a step and make you think about what we’ve been through as (working) mums over the last two years.
- The whole pandemic lifestyle is the most unprecedented thing ever. It has dramatically changed the way we live and see life.
- All along, we’re expected to go about business as if it’s normal. But actually, it can’t be further than normal because schools might be shut down at a moment’s notice, and your kids could be sent home. It feels like ‘plan B’ has to be created, and if it is, it’s staring us right in the eyes.
- Confusion about what to do regarding health safety has also taken its toll. Things constantly change as to what we’re being told the right thing to do is. There are far too many opinions flying around.
Living with Covid day to day was stressful.
Needless to say, we are just burnt out. Literally, our central nervous systems have been fully slaughtered for the last two years and how we feel is just a reflection of that.
So, it will only do us good to remind ourselves that we need to start chasing the joy again. We need to FIND joy again.
Let your word for 2023 be ‘fun’ just like it is for me.
This is what I’ve set as my one positive thing to focus on because when I was reflecting on 2022, it dawned on me that this was the missing link. By reflecting, I mean journaling, which I did over the Christmas period. It’s a simple get-it-all-out exercise that you can do, too. You just need a notebook and a pen. Throw all your thoughts on paper without worrying whether it makes sense or not. The aim is to get it all out of you as nowadays, we don’t ever stop to reflect.
What I got out was pretty crazy and intense last six years for us as a family – going through IVF, moving counties, starting our lives again, new jobs, the death of a really close loved one… all sorts of traumatic life events.
Thought-starter for you: this is all part of life, and we certainly know that it isn’t always going to be peaches and cream. Yet, I believe that within that there is the opportunity for us to find joy again – literally finding something for you, something that’s positive that you can focus on. What feeds your soul?
Here are some examples of what that is for some mums:
- a course in something
- reaching out to a friend
- weekly walking date (alone or with a friend)
- picking up a hobby (or continuing where you left off)
- singing, etc.
Whatever you choose it to be, it has to be your thing. It needs to ignite and spark because once you start to do that thing, you start to feel better. You start to build your confidence back up. You start to feel energised, and that is what’s going to renew you in this winter season.
We’re going to sit in these dark gloomy couple of months at the start of the year here in the UK, before the clocks change and the spring comes and heals our souls. So, I only have words of encouragement for you today that it’s okay to not feel okay right now – lean into that. But at the same time, let’s find the joy. Let’s find the thing that’s going to spark the flame that is going to take us forward.
If you’d like to listen to my podcast on this – you can here.
