What is your biggest challenge as a working mum?

[thecheekybunsmum]

Hello fellow working mothers! I'm interested to find out more about how everyone copes with being a parent/having a family AND working full time. What is the biggest problem or thing you struggle with whether it be 'mum guilt' or the inability to keep up with chores or helping kids with their homework or something else?

Personally there are times where I feel like I'm about to drop some of the plates I'm spinning, and at times I do drop them and feel like something's got to give... So would be interested in hearing what this is for you all...

Another day where you have to try and work out which are the threads started by chat bots, which are the ones started by journos looking for material, and which are the genuine ones where an actual person wants to engage with other people online.

https://nypost.com/2020/10/27/child-free-employees-are-sick-of-picking-up-the-slack-for-parent-peers/

Go away you lazy ghoul

@Tracy1994 a 3 year old article from an American tabloid. You do know you're posting on the Work forum of a predominantly parenting site based in the UK? What are you hoping for?

Oh hang on, it's school summer holidays, isn't it...? Ah...

Sounds shallow ... bur for me, its image

Specifically, as a 40s female in banking leadership, this:

• keeping face appropriately filled / botoxes without looking obvious
• keeping teeth white enough without simon cowell
• hair styles alright (curly so needs prof straightener and coloured after)
• roots doing (ginger isnt v smart looking just left as block colour)
• fashion - up to date, staid enough and only dull colours but not frumpy
• bags semi decent
• hiding underactive thyroid perm 3st weight gai
• trying to fight the diastis recti pooch and hide if
• trying to add height (am 5'4) as younger women are taller but heels are frumpy

At least theres tricks on Teams but agin highlights ageing in face eg can see tear trough has worn off

In banking as a female once look over 40 and 'not glam' opps generally die. JME

@tweedledee76 bloody hell, that would be horrendous and utterly knackering even without all the basic mum & work stuff 😳

nothing, sorry, no struggle, slinks off to the dark corner

Having to take a huge pay cut so that I can be in a job that is term time only.

Do people actually get bots to share threads? What’s the point? Do drive engagement of the platform? Seems a bit sinister.

@Tracy1994 do you have kids? I assume not from an earlier post of yours on this thread?

Mine was just feeling like everything was constant. I'd drop the kids off, straight to work, finish work pick them up then straight to making teas, home work, bedtime and then all again the next day. I went back full time but it was just too much so I dropped to 3 days then upped my hours again when they went to high school. Them days were hard.

Single mum of a 15yo boy. I work full time, 4 days from home, one day in the office.

No need for childcare any more and we get on well, the main issue is providing a varied and healthy, home-cooked diet, while doing everything else.

Housework. Energy.
Timings to get to work and try balance social, family, cleaning, relationship and work. I am also studying a masters part time so quality of my work is no where near as good as it was when I was a student first time around. It's all just a mad race.

I just realised!! Did you think I was writing an article about this? I’m not a journalist 😂 I was a little confused earlier in the thread when I posted it that there were some references to articles. I thought that was a bit rand and probably someone who responded there by mistake from another thread or something.

no I genuinely was/am still interested. I have 4 kids and always feel like I should be able to do everything and work and keep the house and make sure the kids get to do what they want / need to… so felt and still feel a lot of pressure…

My biggest challenge as a working mum is school holidays.

Oh another one for me is becoming space. Both my DH wfh and with a second child on the way that will take up our last bedroom, we are going to be a bit tight in terms of working space.

Having a messy house!

all the time!

think I need a cleaner

Reading with interest. I'm two months back after maternity leave. The first month was LO's (and my subsequent) illnesses. But the biggest thing has been cleaning. I work three days and the two days I should get with LO, I spend cleaning. Today I've done three loads of washing, a food shop, hoovered, cleaned the kitchen and made a vat of soup for lunches.

Not getting to exercise really sucks too. I want to get home from work to see LO, not go to the gym, but I need to go to the gym badly, and I'm too tired by the time LO is in bed and want some time with DH. Weekends I get one aerobics class in.

DH works from home so will put a wash on/cook/do the dishwasher, but it's never ending!

And I want another baby 😆

Everything works until someone is ill.

Dealing with 12yo ds who doesn’t need childcare at his age (I wfh) but needs chats, a bit of organising, homework prompting etc. it’s so distracting 🤪.

Time is the biggest problem- not having enough! So I outsource where I can.

• cleaner every week

-online food shop

• Amazon prime is my friend. None of this making costumes for world book day, I click and it arrives (although I do then have mum guilt!)

Exercise i really struggle with. When not working (or travelling with work), and juggling the 3 kids, trying to hold down a marriage by investing time in husband too... leaves very little for exercise. I recently got a Peleton. Helps as I can do in house, but I miss running and the fun of exercise classes.

My hope is it gets a bit easier as they get older. However, I am under no illusions that my stress levels are probably going to send me to an early grave 🤷‍♀️

You're all so hard on yourselves !

I do my best -most days - and that's ok it really is!
Took me years to realise it's ok to lower my standards and im happy with that now.

Spend the time with your children nurture your children and yourself