Lived Experience Forum

[Former-Member]

@Former-Member i am the same i miss the days where i wasn't so complicated with relationships/friendships etc. Every interaction i have messed up the last few years either because of my own emotions or the memories triggers and scars in my mind hearing you

[CheerBear]

Hi @Former-Member - glad you could join us ☺ Hope your little one was ok last night after yesterday. Being unwell, working and single parenting - that's a massive load. Do you get any you time?

I think it's a great idea to do a bit of an intro if we want to @Former-Member ☺

I'm a single mum of three primary school aged kids. I had my first, who was an oopsies one, when I was reasonably young (young enough to be considered a "young mum"). We left our village, which was a pretry great one, when we escaped family violence and I live with PTSD, depression and anxiety mostly as a result of it all. We've moved somewhere that's not really where I would like us to be and I've found it hard to get back into being part of a village here for lots of reasons (I miss our people, I find it hard to relate to 'normal' stuff, I worry that it will all come crashing down again if I do get back into it, I feel tired, sad, angry, scared and it can make interacting tricky etc.). Parenting for me can be really energising but equally exhausting. Our house can definitely be a bit of a circus sometimes!

So that's me/us ☺

Hope your PD meeting/work day is going ok @Former-Member and that your day today is a bit better @CrazyTiger. Are you and your little one up to anything in particular today?

[CrazyTiger]

Hi @CheerBear
Thanks for your message. Today hasn't been any better. I am sooooo over this crap. I don't even know where to begin anymore.
My monkey is 3.

[CheerBear]

Sorry to hear your day hasn't been better today @CrazyTiger. I remember when mine were that age and we had lots of "over it" days where it felt pretty overwhelming. Do you have any kind of maternal and child health service around?

I'm heading out to pick up mine from school in moment (just in case you reply and I don't get back to you for a while - there may be others around to chat with if it helps though).

Thinking of you.

[Former-Member]

Evening @CheerBear Hardly. My mum babysits on saturdays and the other days i work my daughter is in preschool. Genuinely feeling very crappy and self descructive most days. I have forgotten how to look after myself does that even make sense? 😓

[Former-Member]

Hi @Former-Member - yes it does make sense, being a mum is such an exhausting never ending job 😞 I'm glad your mum is able to babysit on Saturdays for you, are you able to use that time to do some things for yourself a little bit? I always feel guilty when i do things for me or without the kids when they're not with me but i am getting a little better at recognising that i need to, and that it will be ok for them to know/see me looking after myself too... and my daughter is getting to the age where she wants to know why i dont do make up and nails/hair dos and fancy clothes... like other mums/teachers she sees sigh!
Hi @CheerBear Hope your chiddlers have come home ok tonight with some happy stories to share from school.

My lil mister came home with an award for the best listening (after i picked myself up off the floor i gave him a hug and a high five!) ... yay for positives.

[Former-Member]

Hi @Former-Member it's good knowing someone understands. Saturdays are my busiest days at work. I work in a resort so sometimes we can be there until late. Yes i am the same. I feel selfish spending anything on myself i wear the same stuff majority of the time these days. I feel the same i keep thinking if i don't start investing in myself my daughter might not respect herself later xx

[Snowie]

Hi @CheerBear, thanks for the tag, liking this thread already!

[CheerBear]

Good morning to all here ☺

@Former-Member huge go little Mr for yesterday! I love that you picked yourself up off the floor (oh dear!). It's a great feeling to see them working at something and being rewarded for it.

Hi @Former-Member. I think it makes sense too. It can be so hard to remember to look after yourself when you're busy looking after a family (and then extra hard when time is limited). I get how important it is to do, but how doing it can be the last thing we think of/have time for sometimes.

Hi @Snowie ☺ Great to see you here too. Hope you and yours are going ok. Am thinking of you often 💕

We had one of those very dodgy nights last night where most of us ended up in melting down. It was ugly and it hurt (I felt like I was about 5 seconds off walking out - which I wouldn't actually do but I did really feel like doing). One of mine went to bed without saying goodnight after saying some not-so-lovely things, but then left me a little note hidden somewhere with a "night mum, I still love you" written on it. So many feels.

Sometimes I feel like I could really use an extra hand so I can take myself off to time out for a bit of breathing space I think :face_with_rolling_eyes: Today is a new day though and I have my fingers crossed it's a better one (or at least not a worse one than yesterday afternoon/evening).

Hope there's something good in the day for all.

[Former-Member]

@CheerBear Good afternoon

Thanks for understanding. Yeah it is hard. Today i am feeling deflated. Just tired & struggling today to get through the day. Hope you and everyone is having a good day

@Former-Member thinking of you