What Stay At Home Parents Mean When We Say We Need a Break

As a stay-at-home mother of two small children, when I say that I need a break, I’m not talking about wanting a vacation or a treat as a reward for doing my job. Needing a break doesn’t mean that I’m seeking a respite from my responsibilities or that I want to put my feet up. It means that I need a moment to feel like a human being in the midst of a relentless life where I don’t belong to myself anymore; where I give my love and energy away, every moment of my existence, and can’t figure out how to keep any for myself.

We’re all very aware of partners who don’t understand the point of giving the stay-at-home parent of their children a break. They go to work all day and they don’t have fun at work, do they? When they come home to the stay-at-home parent who says, “I need a break,” they think, When do I get a break?

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