Hi @Twinklelight
There's so much in your post from last night that resonated with me, especially the parts about being a mum. While I was reading I thought about how tricky it can be to balance our own needs with the needs of our family. I was also thinking about how much guilt can lurk around - it always seems like there's something we could feel guilty about as a mum! Even on days where I've done what I need to do and I've spent time with my kids and they seem happy and OK, still my head can wander into the world of all the things I should have or could have done better.
I too am interested in whether you have outside supports? It can be really hard to juggle everything, especially with a head that makes the hard even harder sometimes, and I find it really important to have (or try to build) a support network of some kind. I've had some great experiences with family support services as well as mental health outreach services who have helped me in lots of ways, including working out routines, managing difficult behaviours, balancing self-care and caring for others (something I really struggle with), and looking at the overall health and wellbeing of our family etc.
Parenting with mental health challenges really can be tough. I find
COPMI have some great ideas for parents, presented in a way that's really understanding of the challenges many of us face. A while ago we also started this thread
here as a bit of a parent space. It's been sitting gathering some dust lately, but if you (or anyone) would like to post there, please do. There are lots of parents here on the forum with so much experience between us all, and connecting with others and knowing we're not alone with our thoughts and feelings can be really helpful, epsecially when we're isolated or struggling to connect with people around us.
Really though, I wanted to reply mostly to say that I too am hearing you. Hope today starts well enough for you and sending you my thoughts ❤
