Cutting Myself some Slack

Do you ever feel like no matter how hard you work, you can never do enough?

Lately, I've been feeling like anything I do is just not good enough. That's a tough one. It's like when those around you make you feel like you have somehow failed. It's a weird feeling, because my logic tells me I've accomplished alot. I'm a good mother. Maybe I'm not a perfect mother. Maybe my children don't have the best grades, and maybe they don't have the strongest religious faith, but I'm trying. But sometimes, friends who mean well come along and point out all the flaws ("you should really be doing this" or "you need more backbone when disciplining your kids"), and you are left standing there wondering how one human being such as myself could so badly mess things up.

And then a day goes by and logic kicks back in and I realize that I've done not so badly given the limited resources that I have. At the end of the day, regardless of family and friends, I stand alone. And by that, I mean that there is nobody here doing the laundry, the dishes, the homework, the housework, or paying the bills. It's so easy to judge the flaws of another human being when you are on the outside looking in, but really it's very hard to be the person on the inside, especially when you stand alone.

My one ask of the world is that you cut me some slack. I'm only human. And at the end of the day, for the time being, even if it only lasts one month at a time, I see things this way:

• Yes my house could be tidier, but I spend the extra time with my children
• Yes my kids could have better grades, but I have one child with ADHD and another who is just always needy and clingy. So they don't have the best grades, but for now, they do have the unconditional love of a mother who would do just about anything for them, and I'm trying to make them feel intelligent and worthy as human beings. That's all I've got to offer.
  
• Yes my kids have their temperamental days, but they are human, and so am I, and so we can let it slide right?
• Yes I am always on my blackberry. Yes it impacts the kids. But I am a single mom with a deadbeat ex husband who doesn't help much financially and I have to support the family on my own while nobody is here to support me and give me downtime. No it's not right that I am a crack berry addict, but yes it is understandable.
• Yes I could afford to lose a few pounds. But I can only go to the gym 2 days a week- Sat and Sunday. And I do that. It's the best I can do. Stop beating me up for it and telling me that I am not attractive enough, or that I need to lose weight. I own a mirror and yes I do look in it. Fortunately, losing weight is at least do-able (albeit someday). Those of you making these comments need to undergo a personality transplant. As far as I know, personality transplants are not so readily available. So there.
  

I'm learning to be kind to myself. The next step is to teach some of my friends to start doing the same. In the meantime, I'm going to try to focus on the few things that I think I am doing well enough to deserve some praise.

Who needs the approval of others anyways?