In my quest to be supermom , I have come to realize that I have not been taking my own advice.  Over the last year, I have had a lot on my plate.  With starting this blog, going back to school, working full-time, all while attempting to breastfeed exclusively, be a dance mom, and chase after my now toddler, I have been very overwhelmed and failed to admit it.  Thus, I learned the hard way that overloading my life (many times unnecessarily) has taken a toll on my mental and physical being.  So how did I come to this revelation?

      It all started the week of my daughter’s 8th birthday party.  This was also my last week of class and I had three papers all due by Friday (yes, THREE).  So, while I was busy playing supermom, I kept having these dizzy spells and noticing a pain in the left side of my chest.  When my husband voiced his concern, I finally decided to go to the urgent care, where they ran several tests, including an EKG.  Everything came back normal, except the EKG noted “ECG indeterminable; consider inferior myocardial infarction.”  Yes, “inferior myocardial infarction” means heart attack!!!  That scared the crap out of me!  However, the doctor noted that he was sure that it wasn’t a heart attack but referred me to a cardiologist.  With my cardiology appointment a week away, dizzy spells and pain still coming and going, I was completely freaked out.  So, I left work one day and headed to the emergency room.  After running every test imaginable, including another EKG, the end diagnosis was “anxiety and stress”.  Yes, stress.

     While I was relieved that I did not have a life-threatening ailment, just know and understand this: stress should not be taken lightly.  As moms, we so very often worry about everyone else’s well-being but neglect our own.   It’s not until we have scary moments, like the one I recently had, that we begin to realize that we are killing ourselves worrying about everyone else.   According to WebMd, 43% of all adults suffer from adverse health effects from stress.  Additionally, 75% to 95% of all doctor’s office visits are for stress-related ailments and complaints.  Yes, in addition to heart problems, stress can be the cause of many ailments, including:

-          Headaches and migraines

-          Stomach ulcers

-          Depression

-          Alcoholism

-          Heartburn/Indigestion

-          Colds and other infectious diseases

-          Chronic Fatigue Syndrome

-          High blood pressure

-          Acne

-          Anxiety and Panic Attacks

-          Sleeping disorders

As moms, our families depend very heavily on us.  If we do not care for ourselves, there is no way we will be able to care for others.  Thus, we need to find ways to reduce stress in our lives so that we can enhance the lives of our loved ones.  The instructions that were given to me in order to reduce my stress levels were:

-          Identify and reduce (or better yet, eliminate, if possible) stressors

-          Meditate

-          Exercise regularly

-          Eat a healthy diet (low caffeine and alcohol)

-          Find an outlet (hobby or other enjoyable activity)

Yes moms, we spend too much time planning and organizing and less time enjoying.  Let’s take the time to enjoy the little moments.  These are the moments that mean the most to our kids and family.  It’s okay to be imperfect. Let’s not wait for anyone else to reward us.  Let’s reward ourselves.  Let’s laugh more, love more, stay positive and...I promise to take heed to my own advice!

  - www.careermommies.com