i need a break from this feminism stuff

I do also worry that my attitude towards men is becoming increasing combative and my daughter is picking up on this.

I have moments where I feel overwhelmed by the horror of it all and I just have that feeling of powerless anger. All I can do is keep making the small differences I can make but it never feels enough but then there is also the fear of speaking out and becoming a target. A lot of people really HATE women. It's grim at times.

I feel the same OP.
I am finding it is increasingly affecting my relationship with my husband as I have grown and matured and he stays the same and cannot empathise with my anger.
I don't want to manipulate men or allow them to believe they control me

Hello Olivia, are you enjoying FWR?

but I think a lot of feminists forget that men can be very loving and caring as well Nope. Lovely DH here too. Also, you sound a teeny tiny bit sociopathic.

OP, I try to avoid knobbers and the interwebs when feeling like that. Sometimes it comes and gets you, though! I'm lucky to work in a female dominated field so I can la la la my way through the day if I need to.

That's lovely for you, Olivia. Run long now, nothing for you to bother your pretty little head about here < gentle pat >

OP, take a break. Seeing the world as it really is fucking exhausting. Come back to it when you are ready

I don't get you guys at all.

No offence intended (seriously) but I have never felt pinned down by the "patriarchy". I've felt the opposite tbh. Men are very easy to manipulate in my experience. Yes, they love women (the straight ones anyway) and yes they objectify us and look at us physically, but I think a lot of feminists forget that men can be very loving and caring as well. My husband is very attentive, and yes, he acts like an ass sometimes, but he's a good person and a good father.

When I was single, I had men wrapped around my little finger. I never had to do anything, I had them doing it for me. Even now I'm married, I'm definitely in control of our life. The secret is allowing a man to believe he has control, but you steer the direction.

I certainly don't class that as being controlled by the patriarchy.

Activist burnout. It's not uncommon. There's a really good article about it here.

I frequently feel that I would like a break from having to fight, yes. Sadly I don't think women ever can. Give 'em an inch and they'll take a mile.

Life really does do that to you sometimes, yes. I feel a lot happier staying out of the twitter spats and being cautious online generally, and it's certainly true that the news can be dreadfully hard on your mental and emotional health. In periods like that, I think it's only self-preservation to cocoon yourself a bit and just express your feminism by loving yourself and encouraging the women in your real life surroundings in all the small ways which are important. It's normal to get exhausted by it all, I think, and you just have to do what you can to keep hold of your strength.