Me and my (little) shadow

6.30am wake up call this morning which I know isn't bad for some parents - but is horrible for us as we have been really spoilt with Audrey's sleeping until now. Another missed lunchtime nap too and a very tired, ratty little lady by 4pm.

Struggled to keep my energy up as was on my own with her most of the day and am crippled with my hormones once again. Things have been really bad lately and I now have a referral from the GP to see a specialist. It has been getting worse and worse - bad sleep, irritability, low energy, fatigue, awful moods, headaches and the worst thing is I can diary it, I know exactly when it starts and ends and it last almost two weeks.

As my GP put it "that's half your life". So have decided to get it sorted. It is likely to be something called PMDD she thinks and it can occur amongst women after their first child. It's taken me this long to realise that it's not normal and to seek help as when you tell people you have PMS they tend to just smile sympathetically and you think (to yourself) "Oh I'd better just put up with it". But this is actually a lot worse. It's been a relief to take control, finally.

When Angus woke from his late shift today, it was a relief to have some help with Audrey. I actually broke down in tears!

We drove into town as they were clearing away the last of the Manchester 10k. The city was buzzing and we stopped at All Star for an impromptu BBQ before whizzing home with a v.cranky and tired Mum and daughter.