Knackered!!

wishingonastar_3

hi, felt the urge to reply, although my situation is different from your i can sympatise hugely. i'm a single mum to a dd, and as needs must i work full time, and feel just like you. i don't cook half as often as i should, our home is like the local tip usually, and last night i got to the bottom of my ironing pile for the first time since xmas, purely because dd has tonsilitis and went to bed early. i've been attempting baby steps (maybe like the flylady, i'm not sure how that goes), but making sure certain jobs are done every night once dd is in bed, ie all pots washed and put away, kitchen wiped down, and bathroom wiped down (very quickly, lol). i've found that by doing these two things every night, the room are staying much tidier, and each night it takes less time, so intending to try and add another thing to the list. i'm lucky as dd is old enough to keep her room fairly tidy in exchange for pocket money, and she makes her bed every morning. (i do mine soon as i get out of it, otherwise i'm sure it'd never get done).

the other thing i've done since dd went back to school is to draw up a chart on excel, with half hour(ish) slots on it, and make a list of when we do what where to try and find gaps in the day, so we can have half an hour here or there just spending quality time together. doesn't work every day (doesn't work as often as i'd like at all) but when it does, its great.

my strongest advice is to look at your house then look at your kids and remember which is most important, i no longer care if its not tidy, i'd rather be enjoying time with my dd, they grow so so fast, and i can tidy up when she's left home is my new motto.

i can't offer advice on the relationship side i'm afraid,

i wish you the best of luck, and a big hug, personally i think your amazing to do all that you do with the three kids and a hubby in tow, when i find it hard work with just the one.

woas.

biglass

Thank you to all who've replied with lovely reassurance and advice-It's made me feel more positive again! All these feelings go in peaks and troughs-one day I feel I can do it all, another day I just want to stay in my bed!! I reckon a lot of us feel like that!?
I'm off to work now -thankyou again xxx

beachbeth

wishingonastar wrote:

my strongest advice is to look at your house then look at your kids and remember which is most important, i no longer care if its not tidy, i'd rather be enjoying time with my dd, they grow so so fast, and i can tidy up when she's left home is my new motto.

I agree. Even though its not nice if you feel your house is untidy or unclean, the most important things are your relationships and spending quality time with each other.There will come a time when you have more time to do all these things, so just do what you can now and remember to leave a little space for 'me' time too, ie. hot soapy bath with a good book!

I agree with the diet advice too. Alcohol, coffee, tea, sugary snacks and chocolate are alright in small amounts, but if you find that you eat/drink a lot of these then these can make you feel exhausted too. Regular, good meals and you could also try some multi vitamin and iron tablets. I started taking these and found after a couple of weeks I was much less tired. Good luck! You can only do your best - none of us are superhuman.

black-saturn

I don't mind admitting I'm being exhausted by OS just lately. I think I'm trying to cram too much into my day what with work, college course and OS cooking from scratch. Then all that washing up, 2 children to look after on my own and a wedding to organise. Most days I am on the go from 7am to 10pm non stop. Something will have to give because I'm bushed!! Anyone got any tips. I think I'm going to have to de old style for a week or so (even though I love it) and get some ready meals in :eek:

Pink.

Hi black-saturn,

We have had a thread on this very subject today, so I'll merge yours with it as it helps to keep all the suggestions together.

Pink

dorry_2

hi bs :wave;

me too! :eek: i find os smashing when i am off and the kids are school, but when i am work, it just flys out the window!! much to my dismay!

i enjoy cooking from scratch and it is much more healthy for u, but i find that i need my energy the most (on a work day) i haven't got the energy to do it, grrr.

my answer to this is only to accept 4 shifts at work at week, then hopefully, might have spare energy for os things which i have come to love!

another thing i have discovered from cooking from scratch is that is it extrememly therapeutic, if i find myself worrying about anything, i just do os things and worry seems to drift away!!!!

love dorry xxxxxxxxx

black-saturn

I find it therapeutic too but what about the hours worth of standing over the sink washing up afterwards? :eek:

Rage_in_Eden

I'm knackered too - but then again I have the excuse of having just been discharged from hospital after an emergency "casulty-like" admission complete with IV lines!!!! I'm going to have to have my gall bladder out apparently.... wonder if I could recycle it for anything:think: generally though when I am not lying on the sofa doing my best "consumptive circa 1830" act I tend to do jobs when I have got a "burst" of energy on. I do a lot of tidying automatically in the morning and then as soon as I get in from work as once I sit down I root...... If you are feeling consistently tired though I cannot stress how important it is to see your GP and ASK for bolod tests. Also, bit american this, I'm going to start doing a time timetable to see where I can schedule things. Oh I'm going to drive DH mad saying "Oh well I don't think I have a window for sorting out your football stuff - can I get my people to call your people?". :rotfl:

Eels100

Just wanted to add some sympathetic noises to those who feel tired. I don't even have the excuse of children, although work commitments are pretty tough for me (worked 16 days so far, only 10 to go before I have a day off!). I do suffer from that grey, bleary, washed out feeling a lot of the time.

I have found I am better when I avoid too much bread or starch - the thing is, when I feel groggy and tired, bread is exactly what makes me feel relaxed! But making sure I slightly alter the portions so I am getting extra veg and fruit instead of large portions of starch has helped me lots.

Do you sleep well? When feeling run down I try to make sure I find time to change my sheets frequently, have a shower (or bath if there's time) before bed and use a few drops of lavender oil on my pillow. I always have a book on the go because even reading a few paragraphs lets me switch off and sleep properly. And the golden rule is that I must ALWAYS have 8 hours (where possible).

Since I've started trying to lose weight I've been exercising every day, either just a walk or mostly a bit of cardio. I am sleeping better since starting this, and finding it much easier to get up in the mornings. I also feel more awake, and more like having breakfast.

All these suggestions are only any good if you have time to squeeze them in, and the difficulty is building them into a routine (which can easily be knocked to pot if a child is ill/work keeps you late/shift patterns change). But as someone who's had long-term energy problems stemming from a depressive episode years ago, I would recommend trying to make more 'me' effort in the above areas, it's really worthwhile.

Littlemiss-lotsofdebt

Only this morning I confided in a colleague how exhausted I am and last week I bought some Berocca hoping it would pep me up. I sleep between 9 and 10 hours per night and still feel like I haven't been to bed, but have been putting it down to a combination of taking on extra work and running the house.

I work between 40-50 hours a week and also do run all aspects of the house and the only way I keep sane is by being organised. Some things I do that help are:

* Meal plan
* Freeze all leftovers
* Work out my whole month's budget the week before I get paid
* Make packed lunches for me and OH the evening before
* Load the washing machine on a daily basis and switch it on overnight the
minute I have a full load
* I always have a few 'emergency' meals in the freezer for those can't be @rsed moments
* Always have bread, pitta bread, wraps, tuna, cheese and eggs in the house for lunches

Having said all that, I don't have kids so this makes my life that bit easier I guess and obviously making time for them and your partner is also very important, as is having time for you.

HTH xx