Be it juggling an impossible boss at work, unruly children at home or an even more stubborn hubby, the women of the 21st century are taking pride in pulling it all off with aplomb. But this reinvention of Indian women is not coming free of cost . Working women are finding it more and more difficult to spare time for themselves. As they shuttle between work and family, they are either left too exhausted to spend time on pampering themselves or the demands of caring for a family overshadow everything else.

Rinku Chakraborty, a working professional who runs her own beauty clinic for women says, “Handling clients for long hours at the clinic is not only challenging but also highly exhausting. Also, my husband works overseas. So, as a result of this, after going back home I have to look at my son’s schoolwork and complete my daily household chores. All this leaves me with little time to take care of my health, which is ironic considering that I run a beauty clinic.”

Echoing her thoughts , Jaya Shivdasan, a mother of two and a working professional says, “As if dealing with work pressures and deadlines is not enough, I have to come back home to my two sons, one of whom is in school and the other in college. A probable outcome of managing both fronts is that I had to deal with some severe back problems in the last few years, owing to lack of good exercise.”

Seconding her opinion, Lata Dini, a teacher adds, “The pressure does unnerve you at times and has adverse effects on my health. The most important problem I feel for women who are working is weight management. They are unable to schedule out time for their weight management, which eventually leads to problems in later age. However I do manage to squeeze out some time for myself and make it a point to do a little yoga or exercises every alternate day, but my hectic schedule doesn’t permit me to take very good care of my health. Hopefully, sometime in the near future, I can manage to strike a balance between my health and my work.”

“The main reason why women are unable to manage their health is because they end up prioritising their family and work over themselves. Eventually, they end up feeling low because they feel there is no one to help them out,” says Dr Nimarjit Kaur as she suggests, “In order to care for themselves, women can practice simple steps like pranayam, yoga and breathing exercises. To care for their health, they should follow a proper diet supplemented well with all essential food groups to provide a complete all round development. They should also avoid taking in a lot of junk food, as it doesn’t do any good to their health.”

To celebrate the ‘Spirit of Woman’, the KEM Hospital has arranged a workshop on March 8 from 9.30 am to 1 pm in the hospital’s auditorium, T D H Building. The workshop is on Total Health of Women above 40 years of age.