I also opine on:

Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Charting Parenting Expectations


I remember one of my friends once mentioning that she is planning to have kids. 
“Why?”, I asked casually. 
She sounded surprised at the question. “Because I am going to be 30! Everyone my age already is a mother.”
“But that really can’t be the criteria for wanting kids.” 
“You already are a mother. You don’t know the pressure we go through”. 

Hmm. Before I start this post, let’s get a couple of things out of the way: 

  1. I am a very happy and content mother. I have a son I adore, and who reciprocates that back. 
  2. I have a very happy life. Enough said. 
So, despite being that spoilt, I still warn every wanna-be mothers to think it (it=baby fetish) through. There are very strong reasons for that warning, and I thought of making some charts to explain it (just so, next time I can send a link to this post instead of lecturing the poor souls!)

Things to look forward to while parenting
  • Time Crunch: No time for hobbies, sleep, friends or for exercise.

Average time spent for various activities

  • Advice overload: Everyone who has an internet connection (or memory) is going to give you an advice.

Sources of advice




  • Finance crunch: There are some additional (unexpectedly expensive) factors to consider.
Sources of Expenditure

  • Stress Hike: Every parent, working or otherwise is going to go crazy with guilt, and the sheer number of things to do. 

Stress and Multi-tasking levels


  • Songs Crunch: The choices narrow down inadvertently. 

Frequency of songs heard/sung



Of course, there are some major perks as well. Your life gets a direction, and you (finally) get some perspective. Specifically, there are two things I could think of 
  • Energy Spike: Coming back home is not about resting, but looking forward to some cricket/football time. 

Average energy levels during the day




  • Work-Life Balance: The chaotic work-life balances and OCDs are finally sorted out.

Average Work-Life Balance in a week



Happy parenting (or non-parenting as the case may be)!

Source: Imagination and experience :)