IT’S SUMMER! And if you live anywhere near me in the Northeast, already knew that as our skin melts off in the extreme heat. But I’m guessing what you didn’t know is that some of the anxiety that you are experiencing during summertime is because of transitions. Summer is FULL of transitions and sometimes we don’t even realize it. Let’s talk about a few transitions that may be causing you some anxiety.
The kids are home…
I’m willing to bet that there are some of you reading this blog who are struggling this summer. Why? Because the kids are home! We go from them being gone 8 hours a day at school to them home 24/7. If you are like me a work from home mom, this can throw a major wrench in your day to day life causing you stress and anxiety! We now have to change the time we do things that we do every single day to work around the kids. And there is pressure from them because it seems like we are available to do things for and with them when in reality we are working.
Transitions of schedules…
During the school year, you have a pretty set schedule. You wake up, drop off, pick up, do homework, and have after school activities at the same time on the same days of the week every week. It’s a routine! During the summer, that routine is gone. Wake ups don’t happen at the same time every day and activities in most cases have a completely different schedule. You may even pick up MORE activities during the summer to fill the time. ALL OF THIS CAN CAUSE YOU ANXIETY! I know it is for me because like I mentioned I am working at home, but the kids also have activities they are involved in friends they want to hang out with etc and all of that involves me driving them!
Not only do you have to deal with this type of transition at the beginning of the summer, but also at the end. My birthday falls in the middle of July. I always view it as the middle of summer break. And the second half of summer tends to go faster. Before you know it you are having to go buy school supplies and clothes. You are having to start thinking about the NEW schedule that is going to be created when the school year starts. How will I manage the pick up and drop offs, who has what activities on what nights, what about getting dinners made, groceries, etc, AHHHHH! It’s transitions like this like cause you to have anxiety.
Lack of work…
Now… I know this one seems unreal, but it happens. Take for example someone who works for the majority of the year, but then takes the summer off. A great example of this is a teacher. For some, having to transition from working every single day to not working most days can be a BIG cause of anxiety.
If you are someone who functions well on structure and routine, not having that can totally throw you off. Like completely throw your world upside down. There are instances, believe or not, where not having “work” in our lives can cause stress and anxiety.
I think we can all agree that there is something during the summer that causes us anxiety. And the main reason it does is because it’s a transition from our norm or what we are comfortable enough. We have to learn to roll with the punches so to speak.
One of the best ways to deal with the anxiety created by transitions is to create boundaries. Just as during the school year there are certain times for certain things, in the summer you can create certain times for certain things. Maybe you need for your child to read a certain amount of time each day. Maybe there are designated times for work and play. Maybe there are standing times for meals at home.
Last week we talked about boundaries and if you missed the blog post you can check it out here! Whatever those boundaries are for you it’s healthy to create them. How can you use boundaries to create some peace in the chaos of transition?
I’m going to be doing some chat sessions on FB this week concerning this exact topic. I have invited some colleagues to join in on these chats to share their own tips and tricks to help you work through these transitions and limit your anxiety caused by them. Join me on FB for these chat sessions.
Monday, July 22 at 9:00am Eastern
Tuesday, July 23 at 11:30 am Eastern
Thursday, July 25 at 2:15 pm Eastern
See you Live this week. Bring your questions and stories about transitions.