Cassondra Dee

Mom Burnout

Motherhood can be quite exhausting on any given day, with the never ending to-do list, someone always calling your name, vying for your undivided attention, laundry, dishes, work, date night, family vacations… I could go on and on. As moms, many of us are running from the time our feet hit the floor until our head hits the pillow at night, completely spent and exhausted from the demands of the day. Since the COVID 19 pandemic, our nation has spiraled into an extended state of collective loss, grief, uncertainty, and fear.

Considering this, many moms find themselves in a constant state of feeling overwhelmed and exhausted. With all the responsibilities of motherhood, it can easily lead to feelings of hopelessness and you can find it hard to make time to pour into yourself, leading to mom-burnout. Mom burnout, while not an official mental health condition, is a state of mental, emotional, and physical exhaustion that stems from day to day tasks related to parenting, ultimately causing chronic stress.

Here are some signs you may be dealing with mom burnout:
– Extreme fatigue/feeling tired all of the time, even after getting 6-8 hours of sleep.
– You no longer enjoy parenting
– Feeling like a bad mom
– Poor self care
– Mom rage
– Feeling emotionally depleted
– Feeling isolated
– Limited patience/Irritability
– Questioning your choices
– Decreased productivity
– Feeling unaccomplished

Here are some ways to cope:
– Identify and seek support
– Talk therapy, or some other form of therapy
– Re-evaluate your approach to parenting
– Incorporate self-care into your daily routine, such as taking a walk, devotion, journaling, or reading.
– Set clear boundaries with your family, work, or other obligations
– Re-evaluate your expectations of yourself and others
– Take regular breaks during the day to rest and recharge.

There is no cookie cutter answer to resolve mom burnout, because each of our children require different forms of parenting, our own experiences influence how we show up in motherhood, and life’s circumstances are different for each of us. The main take away here for you to assess where you are in the journey of motherhood and use offered suggestions above to help navigate mom-burnout. We are all learning and doing our best on this journey, you are not alone, and you will make it through this season of motherhood just like you made through every other season.

You got this!
Until next time.
-Cass