Sometimes I think being a working mom, especially a teacher, means spending your entire day being needed by everyone and then coming home to be needed by everyone all over again.
I spend my days surrounded by noise, answering questions, solving problems, and pouring into other people. Then I come home to two little people who need me just as much, and somehow the second shift begins before I've even had a chance to catch my breath.
I'm postpartum, still navigating my own health and body changes, and running on what feels like an endless cycle of doing, giving, and trying to keep up. My Oura Ring tells me I'm sleeping okay most nights, but I'd love to know what it's measuring because I genuinely cannot remember the last time I felt rested.
Maybe it's because my brain never shuts off. Maybe it's because my eight-month-old still wakes up at least three times a night to eat. Or maybe it's because being a mom means your body can be sitting still while your mind is making tomorrow's to-do list, remembering the laundry, worrying about your kids, and wondering when you'll finally get a minute to yourself.
Whatever it is, I'm tired. Not just sleepy-tired, but mentally, physically, emotionally, every kind of tired.
I'm not writing this because I have some beautiful lesson about balance or a magical solution to burnout. I'm writing it because sometimes motherhood is beautiful and exhausting at the exact same time, and I think we need to be a little more honest about that.
So if you're a working mom who feels like she's running on empty, too, consider this your reminder that you're not failing because you're tired. You're human. You're carrying a lot. And you don't have to turn every hard season into a lesson or a productivity hack.
Some days, getting through the day is enough.