Welcome to BohemiMama!
Hello, Mama! If you’ve ever felt exhausted, lonely, anxious, or depressed, then you’re in the right place. This is a haven of encouragement, information, and advice for the stressed out Mama. You are so important! Important enough to spend time and energy on taking care of yourself. Learn how to prioritize your own health so you can be your best and do your best on behalf of your children, your spouse, and your community.
Mom Shaming Is The Worst
No one enjoys being the subject of mom shaming. And I think it's probably also true that most people don't intend to mom shame another mom. But it happens. We all have moments when we say something hurtful or opinionated without intending to inflict shame or pain on another person. It kind of comes with the territory of having a mouth. But being on the receiving end of mom shaming is awful, especially when it's done publically, either to your face or online.It Happens To All Of Us Eventually
A few weeks back, while visiting the Japanese Gardens in Portland, Oregon, I was doing the responsible mom thing and applying sunscreen to my four- and five-year-old daughters prior to our ninety-degree walking tour. As I sprayed sunscreen on their arms, slightly away from the crowds (I'm not a monster), I heard a woman's voice. "Stand …
Your son wins his baseball game and you say, "Let's go out for ice cream!" Your toddler wakes up dry for the fifth night in a row and you say, "Great job, honey. Here's the cookie I promised you!" Your daughter's running late. Again. "If you get in the car right now, we'll get milkshakes on the way home!"
Sound Familiar?
I'm that mom too! Sometimes you do whatever it takes to motivate or congratulate your kids. But with the prevalence of added sugar in everything from their morning yogurt to the barbecue sauce on their chicken nuggets, we, their Mamas, have to act as gate keepers. My husband and I just completed 30 days with NO sugar, not a speck! It was so hard!!!! Now that it's done, we could go back to our old routines. But I've found that eating a donut now causes me physical pain... in the form of a stomach ache. Yes, it's sad. Surprisingly, I'm actually really okay with it. When I want something sweet now, I'll …
Summer Boredom Is Getting To Me
School's out, so I'm not running around getting lists checked off and projects completed. I'm stuck at home with my daughters who are incredible and amazing and I love them dearly, but they just want to read the same book twelve times and then play with playdoh literally all afternoon. I'm chauffering them to swim lessons, then to the park, then the library, trying to keep our days full and exciting to make up for the sudden lack in my own life. But...Can I Be Really Honest?
I'm so bored. I'm not the kind of person who does well with free time because I tend to look at my to-do list and my open calendar and just push things off into one of the many blank squares. But I'm also the kind of person who needs to be working on something meaningful in order to keep on top of my mental health. The last three weeks have seen a significant and marked decrease in my mental health state. Writing, my …
Disappointment happens. Sometimes it's a small thing, like forgetting about and missing a coffee date with a friend. Other times, it's much bigger, like unexpectedly finding out you're pregnant again. Big or small, those disappointments can feel all the worse, even overwhelming, when you're already in an emotionally depleted state. Exhausted, lonely, depressed Mamas have the hardest time with disappointment because we're already functioning on less emotional energy. It doesn't take nearly as much to drain us completely.
Emotional Energy: How Disappointment Affects It
Imagine that you wake up each morning with one glass full of emotional energy. As the day goes by, you pour some out for your kids, some for your husband, some on work or other commitments; neighbors, friends, housework, bills, meal planning, etc. And some of that energy is poured into hopes, plans, or goals for future …
I love (and need) this. Thank you so much for your vulnerability. Xxx
Therapy is the real deal 🙂 I’m glad I could be here!
Thank you for such a raw, honest post on such an important topic! It is SO beneficial to talk through our emotions with an impartial third party to help us identify limiting beliefs, correct thought patterns that no longer serve us, and help get to the root of why unhelpful emotions seem to be surfacing and interfering with joy in our lives and the lives of those we are close to. Love your candid perspective, and so glad you are in a better place and getting quality help along the way! <3
Thank you, Traci! I’m really grateful to be able to share my experience from a healthy place too 🙂 Isn’t it crazy how seemingly small things about our personalities or our pasts can so affect our current lives!? It continues to blow me away every day!
Great and concise. I saw a therapist for a year and a bit before I moved away. I hope to find another therapy relationship this fall. Thanks for the reminder.
Absolutely! I can only imagine how much I would miss my current therapist if I had to leave for some reason! I wish you the best of luck finding a new one!
Thanks for this! I really want to see a therapist, and have wanted to in the past, but I just can’t seem to afford it 🙁 for now im just listening to and reading self help videos and books.
That is a great place to start, especially when insurance won’t cover it and finances don’t allow for it. I really hope health coverage will soon swing to include mental health care as well! I’m so grateful to live in a time where the taboos surrounding mental health are starting to crumble!! Have you looked into online counseling? I can’t say I have experience with it yet, but I’ve heard some good things. Specifically that it’s more affordable 🙂
Interesting perspective on it all. I had always seen it as something “for other people” but you have made me reconsider. Thanks 🙂
I used to see it that way too 🙂 I’m glad you’re reconsidering, both for yourself and for those in your life who might benefit from therapy and your encouragement to take that step 😉 Thanks for reading!!