The busy, working mom has quite a bit on her plate, which makes it very likely that you will burnout. Avoiding burnout is important for managing your stress levels, and maintaining good mental health. A moderate amount of stress is healthy, as we cannot avoid stress completely. But too much stress can cause health issues. I love this definition of burnout that I read on the Scary Mommy blog:
"Burnout feels like you are staggering through life, trying to make it through the day until you can hit the sheets. Only to wake up and have to do it all over again. Burnout steals your joy. Zaps your energy. Makes you moody.” ~ Scary Mommy blog
Here are some typical signs of burnout:
Irritability
Low productivity
Lack of motivation
Slipping job performance
A negative attitude towards yourself and others
Sleep problems
You can watch the video above if you prefer to hear me talk about all of the tips shared in this blog post.
1. Admit that you are burnt out. If you don’t admit that you have a problem, you will never solve it. Being in denial, and pretending that the problem doesn't exist will only make things worse. Be honest with yourself, and recognize where you are, so that you can get the help you need.
2. Say “NO”. Stop saying yes to everyone all the time, in an effort to make them feel good. Look out for yourself first. If you can’t do it, you can’t do it. Your only obligations are to yourself, your family, and your job (or business). That's it! Everyone and everything else can wait.
3. Take time for yourself. I know this is a hard one, but you have to do it. You will not survive life as a busy, working mom if you do not regularly take time for yourself. This is non-negotiable, and should not be taken lightly. It's simply a matter of making time to yourself a priority, just like you do with everything else. Remember, you matter too.
4. Stop chasing perfection. It doesn’t exist at work, or at home, so just let it go! The more you aim to be perfect, the more you'll just end up feeling disappointed
5. Stop multitasking all the time. Sometimes you need to just live in the moment. Have fun! Focus on what you’re doing, and be fully present. Enjoy what’s going on at that time.
6. Find a way to cope with the stress. Whether you decide to go to therapy (which I highly recommend), go to the gym to work out, and let off some steam, drinking a glass of wine, having a girl’s night out, whatever you need to do to cope, do it!
How To Prevent Burnout When You See It Coming
Be proactive instead of being reactive. Put a plan in place, ahead of time, to ensure that you don't fall into the traps of overwhelm and burnout. Don't wait until you feel like you're about to have a breakdown to try to get some rest, or take a time out. Stay ahead of the game, and incorporate ways to de-stress and decompress, every day, or at least, every week.
Avoid negative and judgmental people. Block, delete, remove, avoid! Don't hesitate, don't think twice, don't feel guilty about it. Protect your mental space, and have discernment, and be intentional about who you allow into your life. This goes for social media as well. You shouldn't be following everyone you know. Some content on social media can be a true distraction, and kill your whole mood. When in doubt, UNFOLLOW!
Create a strong support system of people who you can call and talk to, who will encourage you, uplift you, and speak life into you, when you’re having a hard time. This support system may even be found through your church, your sorority, or through group therapy. However you create it, make sure you have one in place to help keep you on track.
Spend time with your significant other. Don’t let your kids take over your life, and your relationship. You need quality time together, without the kids. When you neglect your relationships with your spouse, or partner, that causes stress within your relationship, and your household as well.
Don’t over-commit, or over-schedule. Put the most important things first, and everything else has to happen in its time. A lot of us have mom guilt, and we try to pack so many things into our kids’ schedules, under the premise of giving them the “best life”. But in reality, we’re running ourselves rampant, running from here to there, and everywhere, and it just ultimately ends up creating stress for us, and our children.
Take care of yourself. However you have to do that, and in whatever way you need to do it, make it happen, and make it a priority!
Don’t let work rule you. Use all of the paid time off that you get with your job, from personal time, sick days, vacation time, etc., use it all! Stop trying to be the superwoman, who never misses a day of work, because you’re afraid your boss won’t give you a promotion, if you take days off. You deserve to take that time off from work. You’ve earned it, so use it!
Stay ahead of the game, and stay on top of your mental health, so that you can avoid all of the negative emotions and results of mom burnout. It is 100% preventable, and you don't have to experience it, if you don't want to. Take this advice, and these tips to heart, and be kind to yourself, and always take care of yourself.
Let's chat!
Have you ever experienced mom burnout before? How did you handle it?
Which of these tips are you going to implement to avoid experiencing mom burnout? Tell me in the comments below!
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