The quiz I took the other day, along with an article on being an introvert, have had me thinking more about how being an introvert affects me as a mother. I've always known I'm an introvert, but hadn't thought about how that affects my parenting. I love being a mother, and I love being around my children, but at the same time, I sometimes find that I need time just to myself, where I'm not around anyone and also not doing housework. I can get very uptight and stressed if I go a long time without having this, which can result in me being a bit snappy.
Both my need to sometimes be alone and my snapping at people would then bring feelings of guilt (I'll still feel guilty about snapping at people). I would feel horribly guilty at leaving the kids for a few minutes while I did something. Of course, it didn't help that I was bombarded the moment I walked back through the door. Or I would feel guilty that I didn't want to spend some time with my husband after I'd just put both kids down for a nap and finally got a moment to myself. I recognise more now that this isn't because I don't want to be around my family, but that I need that time to myself to reenergise myself and collect my thoughts. After doing that, I am then able to give them the attention they need. I'm learning that this isn't some deficiency on my part and that if I just work harder, it'll change, but this is part of who I am. I should therefore work with my strengths and weaknesses as an introvert, instead of trying to force myself to be someone I'm not. Hopefully I can remember that more now that I've identified that.
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