It's Okay To Admit It's Hard

The last thing I want to portray on this blog or in any aspect of my life is that I have a perfect life. I don't! I get stressed out, I lose sleep over silly things, David and I argue, my kids drive me nuts, and I have more student loan debt than I care to admit. Guess that just makes me .... normal.

We're in this era where a snapshot can seem to define your life. Social media can cause you to feel like you aren't keeping up or that someone on the internet has a better life than you. And it's not surprising that folks are suffering with depression and anxiety at higher rates than ever before. 

Initially, this post was going to be about motherhood. About how as a mom, it's okay to admit that you're having a tough season, or that you don't necessarily enjoy the parenting thing. That's how I felt in the months following Finn's birth. It was a shock to my system. My life as I knew it was over. And it was hard.

I learned to love my new role over time. However, I still have moments where I want the freedom and the silence and the sleep. I am taking Reese to business meetings, because that's just my reality. And as thankful as I am that people are happy to accept that she comes everywhere with me, I also wish she didn't have to come everywhere with me.

I love my life today, and I wouldn't want it to be any other way, but sometimes it's just hard. Some days, I wish for bedtime more often than I care to admit. Some days, I scroll aimlessly through my phone instead of paying attention to my kids. Some days, I lose my patience and get upset with Finn over things he doesn't understand. Some days, I just want to have time with my husband and forget about everything else. Because it's hard.

Like I said, this post was supposed to be just about motherhood, but I realized as I started writing it that this notion of admitting that things can be difficult goes way beyond parenthood.

Breakups are hard. Like the worst.

Job hunting can be soul sucking. And the rejection is the worst feeling in the world.

Marriage is hard. Spoiler alert - love doesn't conquer all. Communication does. And sometimes, you can both suck at communicating.

Paying bills is hard. And stressful. And getting old really fast.

The moral of the story is life is hard. And messy. And heartbreaking. And full of struggle. And if you can't admit that, I promise things are only going to be harder and much lonelier.

The good thing is that all of these difficult seasons have an end to them. It's not always going to be hard. And when you get past these seasons, you come out with a fresh perspective, and a little bit stronger. And the best part? Having hard times make you appreciate the good times even more!

So, just in case you are struggling with something and sitting there thinking "gosh, this is hard" just remember that it's okay to feel that way. Give yourself a little grace. Sooner than you realize, things will be less difficult!