As a mom, a wife, a full-time employee, PTA parent, and someone who holds other leadership roles, life can become a little overwhelming. Especially at the end of the year, all the stress, the worries, and the craziness really got to me.
As I contemplated topics to write for my next post, I realized that if I wanted to be the mom who speaks to other moms, the first thing I would need to do is to keep it real.
To keep it real, it is important to say I AM NOT OKAY, I AM OVERWHELMED, I NEED A BREAK!
Between holidays, play dates, birthday parties, and 1,000 meetings, life can get hard. Coming home to make dinner, do laundry, and still help with homework feels like the hardest task in life. By the time you are already planning for the next day, your brain is just simply tired. Take these hints and these moments to reflect and to think about what is wrong and what you need.
There are days where I need a cookie with my morning coffee. Other days I really enjoy staying up late and watching some reality tv shows. Sometimes I enjoy a hot shower while I cry my emotions away.
Trying to multitask a lot of roles can be so hard. And being a mom is hard PERIOD! On top of everything, we are now part of a different type of normal. We are living through a pandemic. Research shows mom burnout is real!
After going through this experience (and still working through it), I am learning some helpful, useful things to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
In order to be okay, you first need to admit you are not.
Take into consideration the following signs of burnout and these tips that can help you out of it.
Signs of burnout:
- Doubting whether you have completed a task already or not
- Tiredness or insomnia
- Stiff neck/ back pain
- Very emotional
- Taking everything too personal
- Lack of positivity
- Little almost no patience towards the kids
- Feeling unappreciated
How to get out of it:
- Speak up: admit you are burned out
- Ask for help: it is completely okay to ask a co-worker to cover a meeting for you or ask your spouse to help you with loads of laundry
- Rest: if you can get 10 mins extra of sleep, get them!
- Love yourself: look at yourself in the mirror, say 5 positive things about yourself and smile
- Eat or drink whatever you want: if you want 2 coffees instead of 1 get it! Want a glass of wine? Craving a big sandwich? DO IT!
- Positive reminders: use an app or simply set personal reminders on your phone throughout the day, that can keep you positive
- Hug your kids: love and hug your kids. Cry as you do it if you want to. You have the hardest job of all, being a mom. However, they see you as the most wonderful human in the world.
We are not perfect, no one is! However, our imperfections are what make each of us unique and what enables us to build a special relationship with our own children and our families. We need to keep it real and we need to keep our sanity.
I want you all to remember we are pretty great, and we deserve to be happy and be us. We deserve to have ups and downs because at the end of the day we are humans, not robots. Good job moms! You are all amazing, and as I write this post admitting that I am not okay. I also write to acknowledge that I know I will be okay. You will be okay too. We must enjoy life, continue to give it our best, and be ourselves.
Sometimes our situations require professional care. If you need professional help or are experiencing a mental health crisis, here are some local resources.
