A Day In The Life Of An Overwhelmed ADHD Mum
Sometimes my brain just goes into complete overwhelm mode. š¤Æ
Like today for instance - itās been a good day so far, Iāve even had money back off the council! But itās been absolutely non stop -on the go all day(so farā¦)
š Busy morning working with a client, breakfast (grilling toast because the toaster decided to flip the electric trip switch) paperwork, putting the washing on, feeding & tending to Saturn (the cat), getting Ava up, giving her an antihistamine because hay fever, working on a couple of projects for my group, then the printer runs out of ink so have to do the refill - that goes wonky ācause, well, we all know printers are such fun š and social media content creation...to name a few.
Then thereās:
Looking after my man, Normy, whoās still recovering from his heart operation and is also suffering from an old carpel tunnel injury/surgery giving him pain today. So wish I could fix it for him!
Then Harley woke up suddenly and phoned me downstairs ( he never does this unless desperate) for an ice pack because heād woken up with a cramp in his calf muscle š£
This is obviously a struggle for anyone , but when youāre someone who feels everything with so much more intensity than others, that cramp just becomes excruciating. Which means I absolutely spent time talking him through it, offering comfort and solutions and simply holding space for him.
We made it downstairs to get his breakfast by 11:20 and I helped him back upstairs.
āØI did manage 20 minutes to myself then!āØ
Then it was tidying up time, lunch time begins at 12pm because Ava is hungry before Harleyā¦I usually time it so I eat with Ava and we all have a āquiet hourā (Iām currently watching Dexter) but it all went wrong so I didnāt eat until 10 minutes before Harley came down for lunch at 1:20pm today.
Because of his calf cramping being still so achy he was really struggling to make lunch and ended up dropping a bunch of stuff so he asked me to help him. Then I carried it upstairs for him so he could sit in peace.
In the meantime Normy & Ava have walked to the local shop to post letters and grab breakfast stuff for tomorrow, so they got home as I came downstairs.
Then I had to hang the washing out and put the tumble dryer on because apparently weāre in Autumn alreadyā¦ š
Then my lovely Mumma arrived with Louie dog because she was going to take Harley out for a walk but obviously heās not feeling up to that today so sheās very kindly taken Ava out for a walk instead.
Mumma always spots how stressed I am -thank you Mum!
Ā
And itās not because Iāve been dealing with hard stuff. Itās just normal things butā¦
Itās. Just. Been. Constant.
š§š»āāļøAs I said if I donāt have that hour break at lunchtime I canāt get my head āback in the gameā to cope with and enjoy the afternoon. So Iām sat here now writing this and trying to calm myself from having a mild panic attack/tight chest.
I always thought there was something wrong with me for not being able to cope āproperlyā like other people. That I was somehow lacking.
But Iām not lacking.
Iām wired differently Iām ADHD and I definitely suspect Autistic too because Iām the type of person who either needs routine or total spontaneity but NOT like that!š¤£
I do my own head in some daysā¦like today.
Just to add to the hilarity, Iām also in *that* part of my š cycle and perimenopausal so all in all my brain can feel like a right clusterfĆ¹ck at times.
And itās only 2:30pm.
Wish me luck š
Sound familiar?
Can you imagine this routine but with school runs, TAC meetings, CAHMS, Family Outreach workers and phone calls and texts every.single.day?
Yeah, thatās why parents of neurodivergent kiddos are falling apart.
Thatās why Iām parent coaching and run the Neurodivergent Parenting Revolution
Because weāre tired and we forget ourselves in the process of being a good mum/dad.
Iām not perfect and donāt strive to be, but I also know that Iām part of the solution.
The solution is honesty and showing up to remind you that the very fact you give a shƬt is the reason youāre a great parent!
āYouāre allowed to be both a masterpiece and a work in progress at the same timeā
Join us in my NPR group where you can connect with other parents who are dedicated to creating an amazing community š Weād love to see your face āØ