A recent post at Working Mother shared a study indicating that all moms worry, stress and feel inadequate regardless of whether of they stay at home or work.What the study didn't look at are the moms who choose both...the work-at-home mom.

Many moms work-at-home to have the best of both worlds; time with the kids and the ability to help the family financially and have something fulfilling to do. The question is, does working at home eleviate the concerns and challenges expressed by at-home and working moms? My answer is no. Granted, I'm only one person, but I would guess that many other WAHMs would agree. Working at home provides the flexibility that many working moms want and more time to spend with kids. But it's still a juggling act. I'm home, but I can't tell you how many times I've asked the kids to give me a minute so I can finish working. And every time I did, I felt guilty. After all, I'm working at home to be available to the kids.

According the study, working and stay at home moms feel judged about keeping a clean house. Ditto for the work-at-home mom, though I gave up caring long ago. I work and watch the kids, the laundry can wait. Working moms also worry about taking care of themselves. Guess what, so do I. I don't think it matters what moms do, if they are a mom, they put everyone else first and therefore don't take care of themselves as well as they can. Stay-at-home moms worry about money and not using their education. I've been known to do the same depending on how work is going.

The challenge isn't so much whether you stay home or work, the challenge is competing with the traditional views of moms in a modern society. You can't be June Cleaver in today's world and my guess is most moms don't want to be. Unfortnately, there's only so many hours in a day and so much energy moms have to be all that they can be. The answer for moms is to focus on what's most important, create routines, and let the rest go.