The holidays are coming up again, and you know what that means: the social pressure to do something. You\u2019re supposed to be with friends or family, share a cozy meal, and if you say you\u2019d rather just stay home, you get that look. You know, the one that says, \u201cIs everything okay? Why aren\u2019t you with others? Is something wrong?\u201d Well, no. Nothing\u2019s wrong. But believe me, I\u2019m so happy not standing in line for yet another social engagement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As a single mom and entrepreneur, I\u2019ve already got enough on my plate. My days are filled with the beautiful chaos of my child, work, household chores, and if I\u2019m lucky, a tiny moment for myself. But somehow, as soon as the holidays approach, everyone seems to think I can\u2019t possibly enjoy myself alone. “Why would I spend my time on social engagements just because it’s ‘the holidays’? Every holiday is your chance to pretend you’re a social creature, so go for it!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I have to admit: I love my quiet moments. My child is asleep, the phone is silent, and I get a chance to do absolutely nothing. And trust me, that\u2019s pure gold when you\u2019re always expected to be \u201con.\u201d And the moment I say I\u2019d rather spend my time alone, I get that strange look: \u201cBut you\u2019re not really alone, right?\u201d Uh, yeah. I am. And I\u2019m totally fine with it. Honestly, I\u2019ve gotten really good at enjoying my own company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So yes, I\u2019m staying home. Not because I\u2019m some sad, lonely person (I mean, my couch and I have a serious relationship going), but because I love not having to rush off to some party, not having to cook the fifteenth dish, or not having to suffer through another awkward conversation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Society has always told us that \u201cbeing together\u201d is the ultimate form of happiness, and that you\u2019re missing something if you\u2019re alone. But I wonder – why? If it\u2019s your own choice to stay home and not feel the need to perform, is that really so bad? Because when someone asks me, \u201cWhy aren\u2019t you with other people?\u201d the answer is simple: Because I\u2019d rather be in my cozy clothes on the couch than pretending to have fun somewhere just because the calendar says so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I may not be with everyone else, but I am with myself. And sometimes, that\u2019s exactly what I need. I can finally breathe, let the chaos go for a moment, and just enjoy the peace. I don\u2019t need to meet anyone\u2019s expectations, and that\u2019s freeing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So yes, I\u2019m staying home. Not because I\u2019m pathetic, but because I deserve it. Because when I switch back into mom-entrepreneur mode, I want to do it from a place of rest, not total exhaustion. And you know what? The highlight of my week? That one hour on the couch with Netflix, a blanket, and zero social obligations. Just disappearing into my show and pretending the world doesn\u2019t exist for a while.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So to anyone feeling stressed about what they \u201cshould\u201d be doing during the holidays: let it go. Give yourself permission to choose you. Whether that means being with others or spending a few days with Netflix and chocolate (in your pajamas, of course). Because sometimes, being alone is exactly what you need to recharge – and to just be, instead of constantly doing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Love,<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Jennifer<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The holidays are coming up again, and you know what that means: the social pressure to do something. You\u2019re supposed to be with friends or family, share a cozy meal, and if you say you\u2019d rather just stay home, you get that look. You know, the one that says, \u201cIs everything okay? Why aren\u2019t you […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":541,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-614","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ongecategoriseerd"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.coachinginside.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/614","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.coachinginside.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.coachinginside.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.coachinginside.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.coachinginside.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=614"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/test.coachinginside.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/614\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":615,"href":"https:\/\/test.coachinginside.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/614\/revisions\/615"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.coachinginside.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/541"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.coachinginside.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=614"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.coachinginside.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=614"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.coachinginside.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=614"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}