Women Who Do Too Much.  

I wish I knew then what I know now.  This popular phrase, ‘the road to hell is paved with good intentions’ is reminiscent of my caregiving journey.  I used to be one of those people who gave and gave to everyone and by the end of the day, I am too exhausted and had nothing left to give to myself. I fell into bed, slept, and woke up the next morning for a repeat of the same.  As time passed, I began to feel more and more exhausted, yet, I continued to push through.  Eventually, I collapsed at work one morning and was forced to take care of my health, first.

caringforcaregiver.com

Psychiatrists say our behavior is determined by our parents and by our environment.  To some extent, I believe this to be true.  However, it is not easy to recognize our limits until you’ve gone past them.

Sherri Bourg Carder, Psy.D

High Octane Women shared 5 Reflections for Women Who Do Too Much:

 ♦ How long has it been since you’ve sat down and had a meaningful conversation with someone? Meaningful conversations contribute to our happiness and well-being. Are we in danger of losing the art of meaningful conversations?

♦ Listening to silence is probably one of the most profound experiences we can have in our everyday life. We Women Who DO Too Much tend to rush through silence and may even feel uncomfortable when we have moments of silence. Listening to that silence can bring many surprises. For information on the benefits of solitude, see 6 Reasons You Should Spend More Time Alone.

♦ There is always more that needs to be done than any one person can do. It’s learning to balance our lives that will make a difference. See Redefining Balance.

♦ At least once a month -Take time to look around and feel gratitude for what you have. It doesn’t matter what you don’t have in those days. Just see what you do have. … There are many things for which we can be grateful when we assume an attitude of gratitude.

♦ Fear is such an important emotion and a response that we humans have available to us for survival. Yet, when we feed our fears—letting them control our world and distort our lives and relationships—fear loses its usefulness. (See Why We Dread (and So Often Fail) to Change.)