Tired, stressed out, or overwhelmed? Here’s a little remedy.

Do you ever start feeling sorry for yourself when life gets a bit crazy?  This time of year the words tired, stressed out and overwhelmed can easily start dancing in our heads instead of sugar plums (whatever those are).

And can you relate to this or are you smarter than me…

I wait until the end of a really long day when I’m incredibly exhausted and I feel like I can’t do one more thing, and that’s when I decide to remind myself of every little task I have to accomplish in the next month. I start to panic as if I have to finish it all before I can fall into bed. By the time actually do get in bed I can’t fall asleep because I’m still trying to figure out how I can possibly do everything. Yeah, it makes no sense, but then again there is a lot that overwhelmed mothers do that doesn’t make sense.

My Decembers are the same every year so you would think I would have just accepted it learned how to conquer the month like a pro. I mean, I’ve had several years of practice!

Son’s birthday

Husband’s birthday

Anniversary

Dad’s birthday

Oh yeah, and then there is Christmas but we all know Christmas isn’t ONE DAY. Maybe thats why someone came up with the 12 days of Christmas. It should have been the 30 days of Christmas because it seems like we are doing something that has to do with Christmas almost everyday following Thanksgiving.

Sorry, it sounds like I’m complaining doesn’t it? I actually love December but I always go through one day of feeling sorry for myself when I realize how much there is to do. When this day came I decided the best thing to do when you have a never ending to-do list is DO ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. See, I told you overwhelmed mothers do a lot of things that make no sense.

I climbed into bed and decided that I was NOT going to get up at my normal 5 am. In fact, I was going to stay in my Pj’s and sleep ALL DAY if I felt like it. My plan was coming together. I would lock my door, turn off my phone, grab a good book, fill a bowl with treats I WAS going to use for Christmas stockings, and wrap myself in my covers. I would ignore my laundry room full of clean and dirty clothes that were once again all mixed together. I would turn my head from the finger prints all over the refrigerator door and kitchen cabinets. I would pooh-pooh the Christmas cards that I should probably order. Yep, I was in full mommy rebellion.

And then I forgot to turn off my 5 am alarm. Rookie mistake.

Once the alarm went off the guilt turned on and I couldn’t fall back asleep. For nearly 30 minutes I would move one arm or leg out of bed, the cold air would touch my skin and I would quickly move back under the covers.

Guilt, get up, cold air, warm covers, repeat.

I wanted the guilt to go away and I wanted to fall asleep. I had earned my right to a day of feeling sorry for myself gosh darn it! I decided to say a prayer and let Heavenly Father know that He knew that I really needed more sleep and it would be great if He would just pat me on the head and tell me to stay in bed all day. In my defense I don’t think I was fully awake when I said that prayer.

I finally warmed up from all my indecisive moving and concluded that I would just get up to do my scripture study then I would go straight back to bed for the rest of the day. That seemed like a good compromise right? As I searched for the fuzziest clothing possible I unconsciously started singing a hymn. I didn’t even realize I was singing until I was completely dressed. I was soo tired that when it dawned on me that I was singing I had to go back and really think of what in the world I had sung. It was a hymn I hadn’t sung or heard in a long time. It was a hymn I couldn’t even remember the title to or any words besides the chorus because it was WAY to early in the morning.

Then the words started to click I KNEW it was a hymn that was a clear response to my funny little prayer that I was so sure was disregarded. It was proof that God has a great sense of humor.

“WAKE UP and do something more than dream of your mansion above! Doing good is a pleasure, a joy beyond measure….”

I just stood in my closet and laughed out loud. “Ok, Heavenly Father, I get it.”

I looked it up the rest of the words to the hymn and realized the Lord was trying to give me more than just a message to wake up…

Have I done any good in the world today?
Have I helped anyone in need?
Have I cheered up the sad and made someone feel glad?
If not, I have failed indeed.
Has anyone’s burden been lighter today
Because I was willing to share?
Have the sick and the weary been helped on their way?
When they needed my help was I there?

Then wake up and do something more
Than dream of your mansion above.
Doing good is a pleasure, a joy beyond measure,
A blessing of duty and love.

-Have I done any good? Will L. Thompson

Ahhh, parting is such sweet sorrow. I watched as my day locked in my bedroom turned with a pout on its face and slowly walked away. The Lord knew the answer to my pity party was a large dose of doing good for someone else. If the words of the song didn’t make the point abundantly clear the words of the scriptures listed at the bottom of the song did.

But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.
Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.  James 1:22,27

Therefore, prepare ye the way of the Lord, for the time is at hand that all men shall reap a reward of their works, according to that which they have been—if they have been righteous they shall reap the salvation of their souls, according to the power and deliverance of Jesus Christ; and if they have been evil they shall reap the damnation of their souls, according to the power and captivation of the devil. Alma 9:28

As soon as I read these scriptures my mind went to the scripture that jumped out at me when I opened my Book of Mormon that morning, “and now, if you believe all these things see that ye do them.” Mosiah 4:10

Goodness, I get the hint!

So if you are having a day that you are overwhelmed with all the crazy and you just want to disappear… there may be a time that the answer is to stay home and take it easy and that’s fine too. BUT more often than not, if you are feeling sorry for yourself, one dose waking up and doing some good in the world should do the trick!

If you need some ideas check out Light The World  this Christmas. This is our family’s 3rd year participating in Light the World by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and we love it!