Enough.

Originally published February, 24, 2017

Enough.

Am I enough?
Does this question ever cross your mind? I find myself battling with it often and frequently as I make this journey through marriage and motherhood. Am I spending enough time with my kids? Am I spending enough time with my husband? Am I pretty enough? Am I strong enough to be a military spouse? Do my kids get enough one-on-one time from me? Do I give enough of my time, intellect, emotion to my husband? Am I organized enough to keep the house clean, the laundry done, bills paid, and the meals served? Am I smart enough to hold civilized, adult conversations? Do I sleep enough? (This one is probably a resounding “no” from many of us with littles!) Do I exercise enough? Am I feeding my family well enough? Am I doing enough?

Just look at that, within three minutes, I’ve found nearly a dozen ways to question my self-worth! It only took one hundred twenty seconds for me to start down a rabbit trail of negative thoughts about myself and my abilities. And, when we put negativity in, we are guaranteed to release the same thing: negativity. It can quickly become a vicious cycle that can steal your marriage, your motherhood, your womanhood, and your ability to be the “you” that you were designed to be! I think, deep down inside, we know this, but it doesn’t change the fact that we continuously fall into the cycle of sabotaging ourselves.

So, how do we break the cycle and emerge as feeling enough? We change our thinking! I love to journal about my thoughts and then throw them in the trash or light a match to them. Getting them out there allows me to make them tangible, and then getting rid of them allows me to release and move on. But, let’s be realistic, I really don’t have much time to sit down and do that these days. Recently, a more seasoned mama and woman shared with a small group of us how she puts the brakes on this cycle. I really like her concept as it is super simple, and you can do it in literally thirty seconds. Something this busy mama loves! She called it “Move to the Right.” When you have a negative thought (“Am I enough?”), reverse it to a positive thought (“I am enough!”) and physically move your body to the right.

As an adolescent and young adult, I struggled with being enough for other people so that I would be accepted and liked. Now, as a mother and wife, I struggle with being enough for my family because I love them with an unabated fierceness I never knew possible. I want to be enough for them because they mean so much to me! But, I’m learning, that if I let enough creep in, I lose sight of the moment. I forget to just be. And, just being is enough.

So, enough, mama, sister, friend! Move to the right! You are ENOUGH.