Pexel Image by Andrea Piacquadio

It all started last Fall on Facebook when a mom, Karen Johnson, spoke to the hearts of so many, including me. Her Facebook handle is The 21st Century SAHM or if you’re like me and still trying to figure out acronyms (LOL), SAHM means Stay At Home Mom. Her post prompted hundreds of comments and then in March of this year her post was used in a NewsBreak article that highlighted the world I’ve been battling along with so many others; being a Gen X'r, a mom, a wife, and trying to figure out a career at the same time. Karen states this in her post…that I shouted, “thank you for finally hearing me!”:

“This is for all the moms in their 40s who put their careers on hold to do the SAHM thing because you knew you couldn't do both—career you loved and motherhood—and do both WELL, so you picked, saying to yourself "this is just for now and we'll see."

But now it's 15 years later and so much has changed in your career field that you know you can't go back. So really, when you "took a break" all those years ago, you gave it up.”

I didn’t fully give up my career because thankfully I could still design at home. But my design career seemed to always be on life support.

I know I’m not alone in this, but I have truly fought my mind, heart, age, body, the hours in the day, the house chores, advancing technology, and others’ opinions to get to this place today of getting myself back to a career I love and working full-time with clients. The tears, the frustrations, the doubt…IT IS real. And I appreciate this mom, this article, and others who have and are currently fighting to use their gifts and talents.

So please don’t give up on starting again. Don’t quit if it seems impossible, keep going. You may not be where you want to be today, but there will be a season you will be even if it is different that what you imagined, keep believing.

I am doing it…and it is possible!