Boundaries

     My personal life is beginning to adversely affect my professional life. Not only does staying up late visiting with my boyfriend cause me to be tired all the time, it’s also inhibiting my ability to think clearly and make progress on my homework assignments. Therefore, I’ve had to enforce stricter boundaries with him and with myself.

     It seems a bit adolescent to have a curfew, especially since I’m a 41-year-old mother, but I seriously need to find a way to get more sleep. My mind and body both start to shut down when I get less than eight hours of sleep at night. My physical system simply requires more rest than most people. I need to acknowledge and adhere to my personal limitations.

     My new boyfriend is so amazing though that it’s difficult to pull my body away from him and go home to get some rest. My schedule is already packed and crazy busy; I have to squeeze him into the cracks of my time. We were talking on the phone every night until midnight all week. I had to ask him to text me good-night instead so we don’t get caught up in extensive conversations.

     At least we both acknowledge the importance of my education and are willing to do whatever it takes to keep me functioning to the best of my ability. My tutoring was starting to degenerate. My homework assignments were becoming shoddy and rushed. I was feeling stressed, exhausted, and wrung out all of the time. Now that we’ve established some firmer boundaries regarding our time and dating schedule, I’m hoping my body will be able to recuperate in time to begin fresh next quarter.