Last Updated on April 15, 2024

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As much as we love our families, there are times when mums feel burnt out. Mum burnout isn’t uncommon, or something to be ashamed about, instead knowing ways to prevent mum burnout is something that can really add value to our lives.

Burnout feels different for every mum. For me, I feel burnt out when I feel like everything I’m doing isn’t enough, and as a result I feel overwhelmed, stressed, and so exhausted that I don’t want to do anything.

When this happens I get snappy, withdraw into myself, and dream for time alone.

10 WAYS TO PREVENT MUM BURNOUT

Here are 10 ways to prevent mum burnout, so you can meet your needs as well as you meet your family’s.

REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF TIME YOU SPEND WITH NEGATIVE PEOPLE

Spending time with people who are negative, and who make you feel bad, does nothing to help with your feelings of overwhelm.

Consider lessening the time you spend with anyone negative, because being around negative people can make burnout happen very quickly.

LET YOUR CHILDREN PLAY ALONE

One of the ways to prevent mum burnout is to leave your children alone when they are playing by themselves.

All too often when our children are playing on their own, we feel the need to help them, or ask if they’re okay.

When I do this, I end up playing with my preschooler as he decides that he does need help, when really he didn’t.

Letting your children play alone means that they’ll build their independence skills, learn how to find solutions to things, and eventually you’ll have less things to do for them, which means you’ll have more time to do something that you want to do.

Related post:
Toddler quiet time, what is it and what activities can you try?

FIND SMALL POCKETS OF TIME FOR YOURSELF

Every day mums put their own needs last, and most days we don’t meet them at all.

Meeting our own needs is not something to feel guilty about, in fact, it can make us feel much better and more inclined to meet the needs of others.

Another one of the ways to prevent mum burnout is to make sure we find small pockets of time each day to meet our own needs.

This may mean finding even just five minutes to have a hot drink, make a to do list, read a chapter of a book, or just sit in silence. However much time you can find, it will be worth it.

Related post:
How to use small pockets of time to get things done

SPEND TIME OUTDOORS

Spending time outdoors, whether it’s going for a walk or just to taking a few deep breaths of fresh air, can help reduce any feelings of overwhelm that you may be experiencing.

TRUST YOUR DECISION MAKING SKILLS

As mums our days are filled with making decisions, from what to feed our family, what our children should wear to school, what we want our days to look like, where to go on the weekends, the decisions are never ending, and making them all day long is exhausting.

One of the ways to prevent mum burnout when making decisions is to trust that whatever decision you make is the right one, and if that’s the first decision you make, then that’s great.

ASK FOR HELP

It can be hard as mums to ask for help, but asking for help doesn’t make you a failure.

Asking for help means that you get to delegate things to other people, so you can get some things actually done, and even find some time for yourself.

SAY NO

Saying yes to everything is a sure fire way to feel overwhelmed, fast.

Before saying yes to a request, ask yourself if you really want to do what’s asked of you, and if you don’t then say no.

Saying no to things means that you get to say yes to things that you really want to do, and that will add value to your life.

SAY NO TO FAMILY OVER SCHEDULING

As well as saying no to things you don’t want to do, another of the ways to prevent mum burnout is to not over schedule family commitments.

If the idea of driving from one end of town to another to get your children to after school sports or activities, spending your weekends at play dates, and any other commitment your family has makes your head hurt before you’ve even done them, then look at ways that you can reduce your family commitments.

This could mean saying no, getting help from others, or only choosing a few family commitments at one time.

PRIORITISE YOUR ALONE TIME

Alone time for mums is really important, it allows us some breathing space to get things done without interruption, and if we do things in our alone time that we enjoy, we can feel energised to take on whatever mum duties we have left at home.

Scheduling alone time every week when you can leave your children with another adult is one of the best ways to prevent mum burnout.

Treat your alone time like an appointment that you wouldn’t cancel or reschedule, and spend it doing whatever you need to do, even if it means sitting in the car on the side of the road away from home with a coffee, yep I do this.

WRITE LISTS

Writing lists is one of my favourite ways to prevent mum burnout, as getting things out of my head and onto paper helps to relieve any feelings of overwhelm I may have.

There are so many lists that you can write, but having a daily to do list with two to three things on it that are absolute must dos will provide you with a sense of accomplishment at the end of the day.

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Do you have any ways to prevent mum burnout that work well for you?