• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Home
  • ABOUT
    • BIO
    • About August
  • ARTICLES
  • BOOKS
  • true stories
  • PODCAST
  • MEDIA
  • Girl Boner
  • CONTACT

Girl Boner®

Sexual Empowerment with August McLaughlin

Home • Life • Dodging the Blues by Letting Things Slide

Dodging the Blues by Letting Things Slide

September 27, 2011

Last week I interviewed Katrina Leupp, an up-and-coming sociologist and researcher at the University of Washington, on behalf of EHow.com.

Leupp’s latest research, involving 1,600 stay-at-home and working mothers of small children, showed a significant link between “super mom” attitudes—i.e., believing you can “do it all” with ease—and an increased risk for depressive symptoms. Women who were more skeptical about balancing work and motherhood prior to child-rearing, were less depressed.

The good news, according to Leupp, is this: “You can happily combine child-rearing and a career, if you’re willing to let some things slide.” Mothers should ask for help, she advised, not aim for perfection and learn to properly prioritize. (Read the full article here: Why You Should Let Things Slide. Love to hear your thoughts!)

I couldn’t help but draw parallels between Leupp’s findings and the writer’s life—a practice I’m prone to, perhaps partly because I’m not a mother myself.

If we believe that writing our novel, short story or screenplay will be simple, a piece of literary cake, we’re in for a none-too-pleasurable surprise. The gooey chocolate turns out to be carob. The frosting may be bitter or the filling too sweet. Writing, particularly amidst a hectic lifestyle, is not supposed to be easy. If we develop “super writer” attitudes, thinking we can easily “do it all,” we, too, may be prone to sleep problems, foggy thinking, loneliness and tears.

Successful writers don’t write because it’s easy or stop because it’s not. We write because we love it. Because we feel we must. Because we’ll feel sad and empty later if we don’t. And if we stick with it, doing our best and allowing for mistakes, the end prize is worth all the cakes in the world’s bakeries combined…in MHO.

So what can we let slide? Maybe it’s not going to every social event we feel obligated to attend, turning our cell phones off during work time or allowing dirty dishes to wait a while longer. Each time we sit down before an empty page, we can give ourselves permission to simply write, without thoughts of “This better be great or else!” Sometimes it means allowing ourselves to sit and daydream before we start typing at all. It most definitely means listening to and following our instincts.

What about you? What are you willing to let slide? And more importantly, what is doing so worth to you?

NEWS: I’m pleased to announce the winner of the Amazon.com gift card drawing, for last week’s “comment of the week” contest: Ellis Shuman. Offer congrats and check out his fabulous blog, Ellis Shuman Writes here.

Share with your friends!

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)

Like this:

Like Loading...

Life, Wellness, Writing 11 Comments

SIGN UP FOR OCCASIONAL EXTRAS:

Previous Post: « Writers’ Gains from Whole Grains
Next Post: Author Mike Sirota on Writing and His Latest Work »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. taureanw says

    September 27, 2011 at 3:45 pm

    Awesome post! Great points and wonderfully written

    Reply
    • August McLaughlin says

      September 30, 2011 at 1:50 pm

      Thanks, Taurean! So glad this resonates with you.

      Reply
  2. malloryjonesca says

    September 27, 2011 at 6:08 pm

    This is one of those posts that seems so common sensical after reading it…like “duh! Why didn’t I think of this before??” I’ve been holding myself up to crazy standards, which might explain the headaches…LOL Going to ease up on myself starting today. Hmm… Laundry? Later! Thanks for this post.

    Reply
    • August McLaughlin says

      September 30, 2011 at 1:54 pm

      Aw, I’d much prefer you feel well than have a 100% clean wardrobe! Best of luck! Please keep me posted on your progress.

      Reply
  3. angela ackerman says

    September 28, 2011 at 1:12 am

    I think that if we let all the little things keep bugging us, we’ll never get the writing done. Definitely being a writer means letting go.

    Angela @ The Bookshelf Muse

    Reply
  4. Catherine Johnson says

    September 28, 2011 at 4:12 pm

    Brilliant. I let all sorts slide lol.

    Reply
    • August McLaughlin says

      September 30, 2011 at 1:51 pm

      Ha ha… A champ! Hopefully we’ll all follow in your footsteps.

      Reply
  5. Ellis Shuman says

    September 29, 2011 at 2:36 pm

    Thanks for the prize, August! I enjoy your posts and will continue to comment on occasion (and not just for rewards).

    Reply
    • August McLaughlin says

      September 30, 2011 at 1:52 pm

      You’re most welcome! Thrilled that you’re part of this gang. Have a fantastic weekend.

      Reply
  6. Trina H. says

    October 2, 2011 at 9:29 pm

    The EHow article is awesome. Thanks, August! I love what the therapist said about emotional smoke alarms. I set them off frequently myself! Learning a lot, day by day…

    Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Sweet Solitude: Creating Intimacy with Writing & Ourselves « August McLaughlin's Blog says:
    November 3, 2011 at 1:56 pm

    […] Remind yourself that you can’t do everything. Ask for help. For more on easing up on yourself, see my post on letting things slide.) […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Search

Categories

Listen on Apple Podcasts!

Shop for toys 🙌🏾

Join me on Patreon!

© 2025 August McLaughlin – All Rights Reserved

I deeply respect and protect visitors’ privacy. Find details here.

%d