Parenthood is a wonderful, challenging adventure that comes with its fair share of ups and downs. It’s natural to experience a wide variety of emotions while raising children, from pride and deep love to frustration and overwhelm. Periods of difficulty are normal as a parent, but when your stress levels remain elevated for too long, you could experience total exhaustion.
The good news is that there are things you can do to combat burnout before it hits with full force. But in order to do that, you’ll need to be self-aware enough to know when you’re approaching your breaking point. Parental exhaustion often comes on slowly, but many people don’t know how to recognize the red flags. Here are some of the most overlooked signs of parental burnout and how parents can recover with support from others.
Understanding Parental Burnout
Parental burnout is a state of intense emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion related to the pressures and demands of parenting. It’s normal for the average parent to be a bit fatigued after a long day of teaching, loving, and caring for their kids. However, burnout isn’t just a simple state of mild tiredness. Instead, it’s an overwhelming feeling of exhaustion that steals the joy out of life and makes even minor parenting tasks seem insurmountable.
It’s important to understand that experiencing parental burnout doesn’t mean you’re a bad parent. It doesn’t mean there’s something wrong with you, either. In most cases, it simply means you need to learn time-management, stress-management, and critical coping skills to help you get through. For many exhausted parents, online therapy can serve as a valuable resource for learning coping skills and stress-reduction strategies to avoid burnout.
The Most Overlooked Signs of Parental Burnout
When you think of burnout, you might envision someone who’s extremely depressed and can’t get out of bed. While burnout can certainly lead to this level of dysfunction, it doesn’t always look so dramatic. In fact, parental burnout can sometimes have such subtle red flags that they’re easy to overlook or discard.
Unfortunately, failing to make changes when the first subtle indications of parental exhaustion appear could end badly. The longer you try to function while on the cusp of burnout, the more likely you are to eventually break down and experience a mental health crisis. To prevent that from happening, learn how to recognize these frequently overlooked signs of parental burnout:
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Neglected self-care: When you’re feeling completely exhausted, there’s rarely energy left to take care of your own needs and hygiene.
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Emotional distancing: Relationships require effort, so it’s no surprise that they’re some of the first things to go when you’re experiencing parental burnout. You may find yourself withdrawing from the people who mean most to you because you don’t have the energy to socialize.
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Decreased interest in hobbies: Failing to find joy in things that used to bring you joy is a subtle warning sign that you need to stop overworking yourself.
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Feelings of persistent guilt: Parents in burnout often feel guilty because they don’t have the energy or desire to spend time with their loved ones. They may feel like they’re failing their children because they’re not fully “present.”
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Constant Sleepiness: If you consistently feel tired, no matter how much sleep you get, your mind and body might be stuck in a state of overwhelm.
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Fantasizing About Escaping: Do you daydream about escaping your stressful life and wasting the rest of your days on a beach somewhere? If so, you’re almost certainly experiencing burnout.
Recognizing these frequently overlooked signs of parental burnout can be empowering. Once you identify the problem, it’s easier to take proactive steps to manage your stress and improve your well-being.
How to Recover From Parental Burnout With Support
Experiencing parental burnout isn’t a badge of honor, nor is it an indication of bad parenting. Instead, it’s a wake-up call to take your well-being seriously. Addressing the problem is one of the most loving things you can do for yourself and for your family. It’s also important to realize that reaching out for help is one of the bravest things you can do as an exhausted, overwhelmed mom or dad. Here’s how to recover from parental burnout with support:
Ask Your Inner Circle for Help
They care about you and want to see you live a healthy, happy, and fulfilling life. You might just need someone to watch your kids for a day so you can run errands. Or maybe you need a family member to take your kids for a week so you can go on a much-needed romantic getaway with your spouse. Whatever the case may be, don’t be afraid to reach out to your inner circle when you need them.
Join Parenting Forums for Advice
Parenting forums can be helpful for getting parenting tips and advice from other parents who’ve been through similar things. Just remember that the average person who comments in such forums doesn’t have a therapy background. Take the advice you read with a grain of salt and check with your therapist if you have any questions about it.
Get Professional Help
It’s estimated that one in 20 parents is affected by parental burnout. That’s a lot of well-meaning parents who have reached the end of their rope and are barely functioning. If you’re one of those parents, it’s important to get professional help. A therapist can give you invaluable tools for recognizing signs of burnout and learning how to reduce overwhelm.
Parental burnout is a huge challenge for many people. Fortunately, it can be overcome by caring for yourself, reducing stress in your life, and reaching out to others for help. Your body is amazing, and it’s designed to get through stressful situations. But it’s not meant to remain stuck in survival mode forever. Use these tips to help you recover from parental burnout so you can be fully present for your family.
