Have you ever had a fabulous plan for the week? The plan is so amazing that you’re going to be the most Pinterest perfect productive person ever! And what could go wrong? You’ve got hella awesome momentum from the week before and you feel on top of everything.
Then your mom calls and explains that she needs help after kidney surgery because other elderly family members aren’t able to help her out that day. (By the way, it turns into being a caregiver for the whole week.)
Okay. No problem. You planned some flex time in case issues came up. Besides, it’s mom, right? You got this! You’re a capable adult that knows how to deal with these things, right? Right.
Low and behold you’ve now spent three days trying to cram in regular work, urgent requests from a consulting contract, dedicate time to mom for post-surgery support, and try desperately to not to burst out angry-crying after the routine weekly weigh-in. Oh yeah, there’s also laundry, an entire house to clean, the toilet won’t stop running, another trip to the grocery store this week — didn’t I mention you’ve been three time already? Twice to shop for mom and once for your own fridge because it didn’t get done last week.
That makes four trips to the grocery store in a week and it’s not a holiday. Ugh, shoot me already.
How is it that things can be on such a smooth path, then suddenly life barfs all over everything? I suppose that’s just how life goes. It all feels worse when you’re a person that needs lots of structure and routine to function properly on a normal basis. All the fires and pivots are hard enough, then you’re a small business owner too, and the neurodivergence already makes everything feel like you’re wading through waist-high molasses on a good day.
You don’t get to call in sick when it’s your own life, business, and brain. You do get to choose how to react, acknowledge, and manage how crappy everything can be some times. You can choose to do a 10-minute yoga stretch routine each night before bed, you can choose to throw away the delicious bag of Mexican Street Corn Cheetos you’ve been binging, and you can choose to be a vulnerable human and share your struggle in a blog post.
I hope that whomever finds this feels less alone. We’re all struggling in some way, acute or chronic. We have our genetic joker cards to contend with. We all have to deal with stupid bills. Whatever your day, week, month, etc. is dealing you, know that you’ll get through it. It’s temporary. And hey, you’re an adult, right? Let’s eat Girl Scout cookies and French fries for dinner one night, then get back on the wagon.
Keep your chin up, friend.
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