WFH mums

[WFHMum1]

Please share your tips against procrastinating, feeling sorry for yourself, and having so much time to think your anxiety is in overdrive.

I have been back a couple of weeks after maternity leave and really struggling. I had plans of keeping active, eating healthy, staying on top of housework during my lunchbreak etc. but can't get motivated.

As much as I craved time to myself when I had a BF baby attached to myself constantly I am now really struggling not knowing what to do with myself and not being needed. It's so hard to be alone with zero social interaction all day. I'm actually crying I feel so down, which is unlike me!

Is the issue that you miss your baby or that you are bored and lonely? I think WFH is not for everyone. If I still worked for a big corporate, I would love to WFH 2 or 3 times a day, but I've hated doing it 5 days a week. I'm self employed so I do like it now but that' because I am not expected to be at my desk. I can choose to go off and take DD to her ballet class or take a lunch time walk with a friend in a way that would be harder in the days of being expected to be online at set times.

When I am home alone and really struggling, I move desks. Go downstairs and sit in the dining room or sit on the bed in the bedroom. Or, if I don't have calls to do, I go to a coffee shop or the local library. I have, in the past but not recently, also done "work days" with a friend - where we work together at her dining room table or in a coffee shop so we're working, but it's like having a colleague near by.

I think both, but mainly boredom and loneliness.

I'm quite lucky that I can be quite flexible in the times I am at my desk but I usually have so many meetings through the day I rarely get a long enough chunk of time to do anything useful or get to a coffee shop for a change of scenery.

Unusually today I had no meetings and had every intention to go for a swim but talked myself out of it which I regret already. I get into a vicious cycle of procrastination. The less I do, the less I feel like doing, and now just feeling soooo lethargic.

I am going to follow your suggestion and relocate to downstairs right now for a change of scenery!

Yes, I hear that. I'm currently working on making sure I take the dog for a walk first thing - before I even sit down to start working. It helps me to feel like I've done something a bit energetic and outdoorsy and seems to help focus me.

Let me know if relocating helps at all!

I don’t have kids but I feel the same about WFH. What I’ve found helps:

• exercise first thing
• make sure I leave the house
• walk at lunch time
• leave my phone in another room

I actually like my job but I’m the worlds worst procrastinator. I struggle to actually do all of the above, but I’m definitely better once I do!

@Mushroo im going to leave my phone in the other room from tomorrow, I think that will help massively actually.

Exercising first thing is a great idea too, I'll try to do this as often as possible. The later in the day I leave it, the less likely I am to do it. It should make me feel more energised.

I also like my job but it just feels impossible these days.

Good luck! (As you can gather I posted the above when I was supposed to be working so the method isn’t perfect 😂)