subject: A Day in the Life of a Working Mom [print this page] A Day in the Life of a Working Mom A Day in the Life of a Working Mom
There are millions of women who wake up to the terrifying sound of the morning alarm, dreading that a new day has begun. Same is the case of Sandy Smith, who woke up day after day, knowing that the day will just never end.
Every Monday marked the beginning of another frenzied week for Sandy. Every day, she would wake up in morning and snooze the alarm to steal five more minutes of sleep. However, one day, as she stretched in the bed, trying to make her body accept the new day, she felt a throbbing, stiff ache that she had unfortunately felt all over her body every morning for sometime.
Once out of bed, Sandy leaned over and tried to carefully make the bed. As she bent to fold in the sheets, her joints cringed in pain. She brushed quickly and sighed at her haggled reflection in the mirror. Her movements were slow because of the ache in her joints and therefore, she needed to hurry with her morning tasks.
As soon as she was done, she could hear the beat of four little feet. The kids were awake and wanted their mommy now. They were eager to meet this new day, while all she wanted to do was to curl up in a ball and go back to bed. As she got ready to head to work, she bent to pull her high heels from the back of the closet and winced in pain.
There were too many things to do. She quickly dressed her older one and then picked up the two year old to feed her. It was then that her back roared in pain. She attributed it to the ever growing baby. After quickly finishing a bowl of cereal and burnt toast, Sandy marched her girls to the bus station and waved goodbye as ducked into her car, annoyed that she had taken five extra minutes to sleep in.
As she sat in her cubicle, she chanted to herself I hate Mondays. As she put on her headset, she realized that her head was still throbbing and the pain was getting worse. Her Monday morning was filled with receiver calls and deadlines. She tried to multitask, working and chatting at the same time. There was a deadline that she was about to miss and she hadn't had a break since morning. Her wrists were feeling stiff and the computer monitor appeared blurred. The rest of the day was no better. In fact, she didn't even get a breather to take off her shoes.
She quickly threw herself back into the car and began her taxing journey home after the work day was over. She knew she would be delighted to see her girls, but just did not have the strength. Sandy longed for a long hot shower, but she had to make dinner for the family.
A NEW DAY
Sandy is the symbol for every working mother in the world. The more hectic our lives become, the more we miss out on the small moments. We do not care how we sleep, eat, bend or sit. Our body becomes over used, over worked and with little in the way of getting rest. With a regular over use of the body, Dr. George Kosmidesfeels, that the body slowly begins to lose its strength. It begins to get sore and we become powerless against the toll that fatigue takes on the body.
Here's what Dr. George Kosmides thinks you should do:
* When you wake in the morning, start the day with a few stretching exercises. Stand up and stretch your arms above your head. Wrap your arms around your body, and twist it as far as you can to the left, then to the right.
* When performing mundane routine, such as brushing your teeth, do not bend over the sink.
* Don't bend from the waist when you are trying to soothe a baby. Instead, squat straight with your back. Keep the child close to you and use your arms and legs to relax.
* Hold the handset with your hand or use the speakerphone. Cradling the receiver between your shoulder and the ear can cause pain in the shoulder clasp as well as the spinal column and the lower back.
* While in your cabin, make sure you are sitting right. There should be a gap of at least two inches between the front edge of your seat and the back of your knees.
* Many people undergo from tension headaches. Adequate lighting and file holders by your notebook can help lower the risk of building a tension headache.
* If youd back is hurting, it is best not to wear high heels as that can further intensify the pain. In high heels, your weight is not distributed evenly, because of which you have spinal stress as well as sore feet.
* If your bag is heavy, do not put it on your shoulder. If there are a lot of things you need to carry, use a backpack to shift the weight to both the shoulders.
* Do not place one knee over the other. If you have a habit of doing that, it can eventually cause the misalignment of your back.
* Take a break. If you have been sitting in the same place for some time, it is time to move around for a while. Try to perform deep and even breathing to keep yourself calm and keep adequate oxygen flowing through your body.
* It is important to get a good night's sleep. Dr. George Kosmides feels that if you are not sleeping well, and that your mattresses are not comfortable, it can cause back pain.
