As a working mom, it is very easy to reach burnout. Too much stress both from work and home can lead to too much fatigue and strain on a mom. Without a proper work-life balance and adequate self-care, a working mom can easily reach burnout.
In this post…
Why Does Burnout Occur in Working Moms
Avoiding/Handling Burnout as Working Moms
How to Build a Healthy Routine After Burnout
Tips on Building a Healthy Routine After Burnout
What is Burnout for Working Moms?
Burnout is a situation where one reaches a point of being overwhelmed and exhausted as a result of constant pressure that goes on for a long period. It is often linked to work-related pressure which can be physical, emotional, or mental.
For working moms burnout is very common and happens from work and work-related pressures and demands that have not been adequately handled.
Why Working Moms Experience Burnout?
Burnout is very common among working moms. This is because working moms handle a lot physically emotionally or mentally as they juggle between motherhood/family life and work. There are too many work demands/pressures and family expectations to be handled that eventually becomes overwhelming.
5 Simple Expert Steps on Avoiding/Recovering from Burnout
The most effective way of handling a burn as a working mom is by establishing a healthy routine as well as a self-care plan. Also, this approach is a great way of avoiding or ensuring that you do not reach a point of burnout in future.
Step 1: Prioritize Self Care to Avoid/Recover Burnout
A self-care plan is a plan intended to help you balance your life by incorporating ways of caring for your body, mind, and soul. It is an important way you can use to avoid reaching burn out as a working mom. The plan should include events and activities that you will partake in that takes an all-around approach to your wellness.
A self-care plan ensures having a balanced work-life that is tailored for your physical, work, social, and personal life goals and needs. A self-care plan is hence very critical in creating a healthy routine, especially after you have got burned out to recover from it.
Read here for a detailed guide on how to create a self-care plan
Step 2: Set Work Boundaries to Avoid/Recover from Burnout
It is very important to avoid going back into a situation of burnout, especially from work-related stress. For most working moms, the main reason for burnout is too much workload, which can be a result of you taking in too much.
Therefore you need to set work boundaries to avoid overwhelming yourself and reaching burnout.
- Stick to your job description and scope of your role – identify your prioritizes
- Stop taking extra work/helping out if you can’t handle it- Learn to say no
- Delegate extra work/when necessary
- Maintain work and home hours- avoid handling work while at home
- Set SMART personal goals/objectives and timeline
Read here How to Set Boundaries at Work
Step 3: Get Adequate Sleep to Avoid/Recover from Burnout
To make a healthy routine, you need to make a sleep routine whereby you get adequate sleep. It is very important that you get adequate sleep both to avoid burnout or to recover once you have burnt out. Doctors recommend at least 8 hours of sleep. You need to make this a habit, not a once in a while.
Try creating a bedtime routine to relax your body and mind to prepare your body to sleep. You may start with a nice soothing shower right before bed. Further, you can listen to some nice music, light a candle, read a novel, or do anything else that helps you relax and fall asleep easily.
You will realise that doing so is important in establishing a healthy routine that will help avoid and recover from burnout.
Step 4: East Right and Exercise to Avoid/Recover from Burnout
Good nutrition and exercise can never be overemphasized for overall good health . They are very important in handling the issue of burnout among working moms. A good diet nourishes and gives you the right nutrients for your body.
As such you need a well-balanced diet that has all the right nutrients your body needs to handle your daily needs. Nonetheless avoid excessive indulgences in drinking and other substances.
Further, you need to stay in shape. Exercise is not only good for your body but your mind as well. It improves your mental status, promotes better sleep, and is also fun. Both good eating habits and an exercise schedule are integral to your healthy routine as a working mom.
A regular schedule for days and time that you exercise works best. It is also great for discipline which will helps you start and stick to other necessary tasks in your healthy routine. Doing so will enhance your chances of avoiding getting burnt out or recovering from burn out.
Step 5: Pursue a Hobby to Avoid/Recover from Burnout
It should not be all work with no play. You need something extra in your life other than work and as such hobbies are great to a working mom’s work-life balance. Therefore consider pursuing a new hobby or rekindling an old one to create a healthy routine that avoids burnout.
The hobby may involve an extra skill that you are developing and this takes the pressure off from your work mindset. Some hobbies to look into as a working mom include;
- Gardening
- Community work volunteering
- Horse riding
- Drawing and painting
- Cooking
- Knitting
Read: Simple and Practical Hobbies for Working Moms
Tips for Full Time Moms to Build a Healthy Work Rountine
1. Connect with your younger self
Do all that you loved doing as a child. It helps establish a healthy routine that will keep burnout at bay.
2. Connect with your loved one-
Deeply connect and share with those that love and care for you. Cut out toxic company. It will help avoid burnout from happening.
3. Connect with nature
Some serene silence can do a lot of good to a burnout mom. Make a point of going on a nature walk, fishing, etc once in a while and savor the silence. You will realise that such routine is crucial in recovering from burnout.
4. Talk to a therapist
Off-loading and distressing are important for a healthy routine. Have regular therapy sessions before it becomes too overwhelming. It is one of the healthy ways of recovering from burnout.
5. Quit and find another job
If your job is quite really the stressor, you need to make that decision and quit. Sometimes working in a toxic environment will keep making your situation harder. Sometimes a new job and an environment will make all the difference to your work-life balance. Target jobs and employers that are mom-friendly. Such a decision will help you avoid getting burnout.
Read here for the best mom-friendly jobs and careers
6. Take a vacation
Some time off will do you good. Plan a vacation, take time off and just relax. Make this a habit established as a routine. It is crucial in recovering from burn out when you feel you are becoming overwhelmed. It doesn’t need to be an expensive vacation either, you can simply take a week off work and relax at home or in a different environment.
7. Become your motivator
You are your own cheerleader. Keep cheering yourself on to improve and do better every day. It is normal to feel demotivated sometimes, but have that energy to bounce right back. Recovering from burnout and avoiding another one will be crucial this way.
8. Be patient and kind to yourself
It takes time to build your energy up after burnout, especially if you’re still working while you’re healing. Be kind to yourself during this time.
9. Give up old habits
You need to let go of that which limits you in order to keep burn out at bay. You may not be able to make good progress if you are still clinging to some bad old habits. Some habits to let go of includes abusive drinking, poor eating habits, bad company, and too much screen time among others.
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