My dear Flower Friends,
I have been reflecting a lot on the quote by Nicola Hobbs below and wanted to share my thoughts. Women are caretakers by nature. We take care of our children, families often sacrificing our own needs in the process. I remember working days and nights on call as a pediatrician and then coming home exhausted. Instead of resting after work, I would go into caretaker mode and take care of my house and family. I felt guilty at work for not being at home taking care of my family. At home I felt guilty for not completing my adult homework--in my case all the medical charts for work I was supposed to do after a day of seeing patients. We live in a culture where the expectation is that we as women put ourselves last leading to burnout. This must change.
This year, I want practice being a "relaxed woman." Why? Because life is short, and I want to enjoy it when I am healthy. This means unlearning many deeply=rooted behaviors that in the past put me last. It's going to take time to learn how to prioritize my wants and needs. Now, of course, I am not going to abandon my family or physician responsibilities, But my new LIFE resolution is to learn how to give myself "unconditional permission to relax," without guilt, without apology, without justification. Relaxation may not mean the same to everyone. For example, gardening is hard physical work, but for me it is also mentally relaxing, as is making beautiful flower bouquets,
I hope my sisters reading this blog will join me by making a life resolution to do one pleasurable thing for themselves daily "without guilt, without apology, without feeling like they need to earn it."
XOXO,
Dr. Mena
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