'I am going crazy!': Another mom shares how lockdown is affecting her family

This mom of two wrote in response to this reader's letter, to tell us "I feel like I am reading about my life right now!"

She goes on to explain:

I am also a mom working in essential services with a 2 year old and a 6 year old at home - the only difference is that I am not allowed to work from home: my poor husband is the one trying to work from home while looking after the 2 kids!

I feel like my whole support structure has collapsed - apart from being mom and fulfilling my role at work, I am now cook, cleaner (not very successful, I must say), teacher, playball-coach, garden services and social worker, trying to extend a helping hand wherever I can!

• Are you successfully juggling work, schooling and staying home? I'm not
• Tips from a home-schooling mum for keeping kids productive during social isolation
• Is your family emotionally prepared for the national lockdown?

I am going crazy!

I have made arrangements at work to go in earlier so I can leave earlier, which means my day already starts much earlier than it used to, but as soon as I get home, it is home-work time.

My son is in grade 1 this year, and I am grateful for the school's effort to keep the academic year going, but we sit every afternoon trying to keep up to date with the pages and pages of work they send.

And of cause, the fighting, the insurmountable amount of fighting we do because of this - my son resists every day and who would not, because who in their right mind wants to catch up on a whole day's work between 5 and 6pm?

But at this stage, my biggest fear is actually for this lock-down to end and everything is forced to go back to normal...except for the schools!

Because once my husband has to go back to the office, we will not have anyone to stay at home with the kids!

All of these things weigh so heavy on my mind - what to do with the kids, how to protect us against the virus, how to keep our jobs in these tough economic times - I am at the point where I want to go to the pharmacy just to get something to help me cope.

Parents, I feel your anxiety and I want you to know you are not alone.

Together in spirit, we will keep this going until it is over, because Christmas will come and by then, it will be ok.

- Working mom of two

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