I am a mom and I work from home. How to keep calm?

A working mom is like an unpatented perpetual motion machine. In the morning, she gathers the children to school at a frantic pace, then rushes to work, after work — to pick up the children from the kindergarten or school, then — for groceries to the store. But still cooking, checking lessons, reading books before going to bed …

When to do everything and how not to lose the remnants of sanity in such a crazy rhythm? Our useful tips and rules will come to the rescue.

Tip #1: Assign Responsibilities

To live in a family means to comply with certain agreements. Who said that only mom should do the cleaning?

Distribute family responsibilities according to the forces of the household. Let someone wash the dishes, someone wipe the dust, vacuum or care for the hamster. Divide and conquer — only in this way mom will cease to be an omnipotent, but tired genie.

Tip #2: Do Only What Is Necessary

Why, after ironing, sort children’s things by color, wipe baseboards every day or wash door mats? «Obsessive» actions can lead to neuroses. All this only takes time, but in fact it brings a minimum of benefit — after all, no one will suffer if the baseboards in the house are wiped once every couple of months or less.

Do only those things that you can’t do without. Cooking is important. Payment of utility bills — too. It is better to spend your time and energy on urgent and truly important actions. Postpone and endure what can wait.

Tip #3: Don’t Forget the Pleasures

Never forget the things that bring you joy. Taking care of your mental health and psycho-emotional state is no less important than daily personal hygiene. Otherwise, problems can begin immediately on all fronts: both in the family and at work.

Pamper yourself more often: dancing, yoga, going to a massage therapist or to the pool — in a word, everything that gives pleasure. And, of course, you should refrain from doing things that bring only anxiety, stress and negative emotions. Refuse to join a parent committee, accompany children on a trip to the theater, or come up with a number for a parenting competition. Saying “no” is nothing to be ashamed of.

Tip #4: Doing the Unchanging

Few people know how much useful habits, brought to automatism, actually simplify our lives. For example, brushing your teeth before going to bed or preparing clothes for tomorrow. For many, a cup of coffee in the morning is invariable, and for some, a walk with the dog.

Everything that does not fall into the category of “unchanging” can be transferred and even canceled with peace of mind. Therefore, there is no reason to kill yourself for the sake of cleaning or washing kitchen towels. There are forces? Do it. No strength? Great: do it when the mood or opportunity arises.

Tip #5: Stay on your own

Many people mistakenly believe that with the advent of children, a woman ceases to be herself — now she is a mother and this is her main role. However, a woman is first and foremost a person who has the full right to autonomy, personal space, relaxation and loneliness.

The need for solitude especially increases among working mothers, since she seems to come from one job to another: parenthood is hard work.

Do not be tormented by guilt when you want to be alone with yourself away from children. On the contrary, this will allow a working mother to preserve her psyche, recover mentally and physically, relieve tension and stress.

Leave children with their father, grandparents, call nannies and thus use your right to silence and solitude.

Tip #6: Simplify Cooking

One of the biggest challenges for working moms is cooking. Coming home from work, you just want to bury your forehead in the pillow, but you need to feed the children. What to do? Simplify your cooking!

You don’t need to cook a five-course dinner, two desserts and compote on your last breath. In many parts of the world, working women make it easier for themselves by preparing convenience foods. You can buy them in the store (and there is nothing to be ashamed of), or you can cook them in advance when you have a lot of energy and a good mood.

Prepare meat and hot dishes for several days at once. So it will not be necessary every day to puzzle over how to feed the household. As needed, you can simply cook a side dish — and the food is ready.

No energy to cook at all? Have eggs, frozen vegetables, or canned food ready. Better yet, order food delivery.

Being a working mom is really hard. Therefore, do not complicate your life even more. Fatigue is the first sign that it’s time to slow down and take care of yourself. Find a real source of strength — a literature club at the local library, a fitness room, going to the movies in splendid isolation, makeup courses — and gradually drive out the driven squirrel in the wheel.