Emotional toil of festival times

Festivals are happy times, right? Time for merriment, revelry, celebration, enjoying yourself...

Wrong! Studies show festivals call for a steady spike in stress levels. Cortisol shoots up, starting with preparation for festivals, and remains high throughout, in the quest to do everything perfectly, "at least during the festival".

Guess who bears the brunt of this? Yes, its the one who takes emotional labour for everyone she cares for - the woman of the house.

She wants everything to be perfect, so works her ass off tidying and cleaning things. Then she wants her family to be fed well, so spends hours toiling away making delicacies in the kitchen. Rangoli to be painted - there she is with the brush. Festoons to be hung up - she's balancing herself on a stool. Furniture rearranged, flowers put up, puja room decorated? Yes, only one person who signs up for all this.

Then there's the stress of the whole family at home, stepping on each other's toes. She has to appease tempers, soothe fragile egos, keep the home from exploding. Guests come over or you go socializing, its her headache. Buying presents, arranging sweets and food, ensuring everyone is appropriately dressed and smiling at least.

And with the maid and cook on leave (festival time, remember?) she has to take care of daily meals and cleaning up too. Everyone relaxes - they have worked hard all year; the woman of the house slogs away.

And then the compliments keep coming in. "You stay at home, you don't know a thing about what the roads look like! I'm not going anywhere, please let me rest" "Why are you so obsessed with cleanliness and decor, mom?" "These clothes are so "yesterday" mom! Why didn't you ask me before ordering?" "Why do you keep nagging all day? Chill and let me chill too!" "I am off with my friends, can't stick around at home all day!"

So, you are left at home, tired and aching, hoping the family is together at least for the festival lunch or dinner, maybe an outing or two, when guests come home. After all the physical and emotional toil, can you enjoy the festivities?

Ask any woman, and she will tell you - the last time she really enjoyed during a festival was when she was a kid herself. or when she was on a holiday.

#FestiveStress #EmotionalToil #EmotionalLabour #WomenStressing

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