Life According To My Toothbrush

I confess. I consume more toothbrush than the regular person would. What if I tell you I replace mine every week? It's rather shameful that my husband is working very hard so he can provide for my weekly toothbrush demands! But before you judge me, it's not at all because I'm OCD that way or that I have a vendetta to get rid of every toothbrush that graces my teeth every week! If anything, my vendetta would be on the debris on my teeth. I have a bad habit - if you can call it that - of brushing my teeth so hard, like with a vengeance, it leaves my toothbrush all frayed, slanted and disheveled like an old witch's broom that have seen better days in as little as one week or less!

What can I say?  I brutally brush that way. If I don't, it makes me feel like I have not brush enough or cleaned my teeth enough. I'm like a savage when it comes to brushing those darn debris off!

And serves me right one particular night. I noticed that I have yet again made my usual abuse on my toothbrush and needed a replacement. Lucky me, we were out of extras!

Tragedy!

I was stuck with flattened bristles!

"I can't brush my teeth with this one!" I exclaimed in disappointment as my husband who was standing across me, was happily brushing away his teeth - with his perfectly bristled toothbrush no less!

While I continue to lament about my misfortune and blabbered like a whiny child who just lost her candy, my geek-of-a-husband sheepishly looked my way with a visibly mischievous smile on his face. He obviously finds my misfortune amusing! Normally, I would have ignored it but that night, I was a little stabby for not having a new toothbrush. I swear I could have easily knocked all of his teeth off with my toothbrush and gotten rid of that smirk-y smile. But that means I have to use the only toothbrush I have.

I'd rather not waste it.

"Well..." he started. "If you don't brush your teeth so hard, then you won't be having this dilemma now..." he said matter-of-factly. Then went on and on about how to do it right, but he completely lost me at "brushing hard".

I looked at my toothbrush and for all the oddness in me, a sudden thought struck me: "This is how I'm treating myself. I'm "brushing" myself so hard and it's leaving me wasted!".

Are you like this with yourself a lot of the times too?

As a woman and a mom, we are so guilty of doing everything for others, we are so inundated with chores, we can't even stop long enough to smell the roses. We also fret about the most minute stuff just to make things perfect and flawless - for others!

And when things don't go right, we are quick to blame ourselves. We also love to overwork ourselves to a point that it makes us feel guilty when we inject a little "me time".

We "brush" ourselves very hard a lot of time, it leaves us emotionally, physically and psychologically drained and we blame ourselves endlessly.

Did I just hear someone say "Thanks Zoloft!?"

See, it's almost like a sadistic love affair with ourselves.

So what if the dishes are piling up and not washed for a day?
So what if the dust bunnies are collecting and becoming a permanent fixture in that corner of your house?
So what if the laundry is as tall as the Eiffel tower?

If you are tired, rest.
If you have a headache, rest and gulp coffee like I do.
Everything else can wait.

Or you can ask for help.

Life shouldn't be harsh. It should be treated gently and softly. You should treat yourself nice.

It's time you stop brushing yourself hard.

If not, you'll end up like my toothbrush.

A wretched toothbrush.