Mothers can no longer be the ones who do it all

I don’t know who needs to hear this, but mothers can’t continue to be the ones trying to juggle all the things. This week I’ve seen a handful of posts and articles talking about the mental load and burnout mothers (especially Black mothers) are experiencing due to the pandemic.

We are the ones who carry the load, who sacrifice, who power through. And it is having a huge impact, which I have learned first hand over this year.

I’ve sat with friends who talk about the loads they carry and how overwhelmed we all feel. The parts of our lives we sacrificed for the sake of everyone else in our homes.

It’s the small things that add up. The constant give.

Today I had my monthly therapy appointment. But my husband also had a work meeting, something I didn’t find out about until this morning. As he told me, I could feel the burning in my throat as I quickly tried to process how I’d make it through a tough (and needed) session with both kids. I was fully prepared to give, even though I needed to be fully engaged. One thing that did not cross my mind, was to take.

In my own motherhood experience, I have found it difficult to take, especially during moments like this.

My husband and I worked out details and I was able to only have one child pop her head in during my session. And when I walked downstairs this was what I saw.

We need more moments like this. More equal loads from our partners and communities.

Our daughters and sons will thank us for it.

This post originally appeared on Kimberlee W. Anthony’s Instagram.