Coleen gives advice to a mum who says she is unhappy after giving up work to look after her small kids. Get the latest top news stories sent straight to your inbox with our daily newsletter We have more newsletters Get the latest top news stories sent straight to your inbox with our daily newsletter We have more newsletters I’m a woman in my 30s and feel at quite a low point in my life. I have two children aged two and four, and gave up work to look after them while they’re young.
My husband works full-time in the office and gets home about 7pm most nights, although it’s sometimes later, so I’m on my own all day and don’t have a lot of spare cash to do things with the kids. I constantly compare myself to all my friends, who seem to be having a much better time – glamorous holidays, interesting jobs, busy social lives and so on. I torture myself by looking through their I nstagram feeds and feel even worse about my situation.
I’ve talked to my mum about it and she said it’s just a phase in my life and it won’t last forever but I’m struggling to see how I can feel better. My husband is sympathetic and he’s a caring person but he’s also busy with his job and I’m not sure he really understands why I’m unhappy as I chose to give up work to spend time with the children and we’re managing on his wages. Any advice would be appreciated.
Yes, you did choose to give up work to look after the kids while they’re young but it doesn’t mean it won’t be.
