For the past couple of days, my mind has been in a kind of fog which I get sometimes, especially when I feel worn out. Throughout the weeks my energy goes way up, then way down, then way up, then way down again. When I’m up, my mind is sharp, I can only sleep a few hours at night but I don’t tire, and I get a million things done. When I’m down, my brain goes into a fog, I’m really spacey, I can’t think straight or remember anything; I feel so exhausted I can rest all day long (doing the minimum of  work), and still feel as tired at the end of the day as at the beginning. After a few days of this, I get all rested up and I swing back into the up mode, until I exhaust myself from almost non-stop activity and lack of sleep, and I drop back into the down mode. Being in the down mode feels overwhelming, and I’ve realized I need help for these times, especially. (Any mom could use help in general, of course.)

            So I researched hiring a personal assistant, and I found one here in town who is quite inexpensive. I’m going to try her out this week. She can help pick up the pieces which fall through the cracks, and do the things I never get to as often as I should, and the tasks which I don’t ever feel like doing. I’ll have her do some minimal housecleaning every time she comes, and she can help me organize my life, my papers, and my home. She can do childcare if necessary, run errands, make phone calls, etc. I’m hoping she can also sew, but even if she can’t, she can work on mending while I sew—just doing it together will get me going. I have so many great projects in my head which I want to do, but they aren’t getting done at all, so she can help me get those started and maybe finished, too. I’m hiring her once this month, and if it works out I’m hoping to bring her out 2-4 times a month--once a week would be the ideal. My hope is that with her help I can live more efficiently, realize my ideas, and get so much more done.

            I found her by doing a variety of Google searches for “personal assistant”, “personal assistant services” etc., and included my town name is some searches. I found articles and worldwide concierge companies, and her individual ad which she placed in a local paper. In this Information Age in which we live, PA’s aren’t just for the super-rich anymore, we all need them!