This week we are studying from the questions of others, what to do, how to do it, and why. Hope you enjoy this series and learn lots from it. This second letter is from a mother of three, ages five to ten, and asks a very good question. Enjoy!
Taking a break on Bond (Photo credit: pamhule)
Dear Katharine,
I’m so tired and cannot even say why. I can remember when I used to do so much more and now I hardly can get out of bed. It’s odd because I’m not so tired in the middle of the night. Anyway, I just wonder if there’s some trick to being all the things a home school mom needs to be, and keeping at it. I mean, am I forgetting something? –Shelly
Dear Shelly,
Maybe you are overlooking something. It is easy for us to become caught up in the bustle and not realize we are adopting different habits. Let’s honestly look at your life a moment and ask a few questions, okay?
Do you read your Bible, daily, and pray? I always slip away from good attitudes when I slip away from the Author of all goodness. We cannot expect to succeed if we break the rules about keeping in contact with the Lord. Are you forgetting to rejoice in the Lord? It is the joy of the Lord that is our strength.
Do you ever get a break? Nearly everyone else gets breaks, you know. People take vacations from their jobs all the time and return very refreshed.
Of course, you cannot just abandon your children and husband for a week, but you can abandon the thoughts and cares for a few minutes and take little imaginary mini-vacations while you read or bathe.
By the way, are you doing too many things? Do we really need to provide dance, music, art, sports, and oratory lessons for each child, for each semester and attend each meeting and field trip? Is that why we do this? Are you ever at home, as in home school? Maybe you are running yourself ragged.
Do you take care of your body? When moms forget to take vitamins, take a walk, take a nap, or take time off from caffeine, they usually are tired, whether they homeschool or not. The body is the temple of the Holy Spirit and we should be good stewards of it.
There you have it–questions that cover all three aspects of the whole of a person: spirit, soul, and body. You should now realize a few changes you need to make. 🙂
If all the above does not apply, I would like to ask you if you might be either ill or depressed.
Sometimes illness can masquerade as tiredness and sometimes depression can hit us from the side very unexplainably. If your tiredness does not fall into any of the three categories above, you may need help from a professional.
I am a professional mom, but I may not be the professional that you need. You may need a doctor or a good, Christian, pastoral counselor. If you think that may be the case, I pray you not delay–you owe it to your children.
Love, Katharine
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Katharine is a writer, speaker, women's counselor, and professional mom. Happily married over 50 years to the same gorgeous guy. She loves cooking amazing homegrown food, celebrating grandbabies, her golden-egg-laying hennies, and watching old movies with popcorn.
Her writing appears at Medium, Arkansas Women Bloggers, Contently, The Testimony Train, Taste Arkansas, Only in Arkansas, and in several professional magazines and one anthology.
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6 thoughts on “A Week of Answers – Why Am I So Tired?”
Great question and awesome answers! I was going through this a few years ago myself and it turned out to be a health issue. I was severely vitamin D deficient and lacking in iron, plus I probably wasn’t eating well or sleeping enough. As moms, we tend to put ourselves last. While I appreciate the heart of that sentiment, we need to make sure we are meeting our own basic needs. If mommy isn’t healthy, she can’t take care of anyone else.
Great post!
Thanks so much, Cristina! Vitamin D deficiency could really be dangerous, as would iron deficiency, and would make you tired, too.
And sometimes, we have to put ourselves last, like when several little ones have a tummy bug, but we get into a rut about that and never do let up, wouldn’t you say? I know I do. I can go and go so long, I forget how to stop until I’m about to drop.
Anyway, thanks, again, for stopping by and leaving a comment! 🙂
I love the loving way you answered this mother. So many people are ready to lecture, lecture, lecture. You seem to have mastered the art of speaking the truth in love, and I appreciated this more than I can say. Yet another timely post for me. Thank you.
Tiff, I’m really glad you liked this post. I’ve been there, too. I think we come to a point where we think it is not okay to stop, that life will go bad if we stop. Not true. And then if my body is speaking to me, I tell it to shut up. It can be such a combination, and a person can look or feel lazy, when it’s really physical or emotional and a mom just needs HELP.
Truth. You speak the Truth. I’m in the midst of that very struggle – trying to balance my physical/emotional needs with the needs of my children, and with my diligence for my work.
Home's Cool! 
Great question and awesome answers! I was going through this a few years ago myself and it turned out to be a health issue. I was severely vitamin D deficient and lacking in iron, plus I probably wasn’t eating well or sleeping enough. As moms, we tend to put ourselves last. While I appreciate the heart of that sentiment, we need to make sure we are meeting our own basic needs. If mommy isn’t healthy, she can’t take care of anyone else.
Great post!
Thanks so much, Cristina! Vitamin D deficiency could really be dangerous, as would iron deficiency, and would make you tired, too.
And sometimes, we have to put ourselves last, like when several little ones have a tummy bug, but we get into a rut about that and never do let up, wouldn’t you say? I know I do. I can go and go so long, I forget how to stop until I’m about to drop.
Anyway, thanks, again, for stopping by and leaving a comment! 🙂
I love the loving way you answered this mother. So many people are ready to lecture, lecture, lecture. You seem to have mastered the art of speaking the truth in love, and I appreciated this more than I can say. Yet another timely post for me. Thank you.
Tiff, I’m really glad you liked this post. I’ve been there, too. I think we come to a point where we think it is not okay to stop, that life will go bad if we stop. Not true. And then if my body is speaking to me, I tell it to shut up. It can be such a combination, and a person can look or feel lazy, when it’s really physical or emotional and a mom just needs HELP.
Truth. You speak the Truth. I’m in the midst of that very struggle – trying to balance my physical/emotional needs with the needs of my children, and with my diligence for my work.
I pray you are finding that balance!