All parents know what it’s like to experience fatigue. Caring for a child can take a heavy emotional, physical, and mental toll on parents. Thankfully, there is a lot you can do to combat fatigue and maintain the energy you need to keep up with your child. Provided are some ways to help you readily diagnose your level of parental fatigue and create a self-care treatment plan to get your well-being back on track.
Assess Your Level of Fatigue
Start by evaluating your current fatigue levels. Try to rate your level of daily fatigue on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the most severe fatigue you can imagine. For more help determining how fatigue impacts your life, ask yourself the following four questions:
● How is your sleep quality?
● How much time do you spend providing care to your child each day?
● How is your marital satisfaction?
● Do you have symptoms of depression and/or anxiety?
Thinking about questions like these can highlight specific challenges causing your fatigue or resulting from your fatigue. Understanding how fatigue affects your life and parenting efficacy can help you make a realistic treatment plan. Untreated parental fatigue can quickly lead to
parental burnout.
Make Time for Personal Goals
Balancing your parenting roles and responsibilities alongside your personal goals can be challenging. However, making time for personal hobbies, pursuits, and passions can help you maintain your sense of self and gain greater fulfillment in your life.
For example, if your current career feels too stressful or mundane, consider seeking a new position. Create a professional-looking resume to increase your shot at landing the job you really want. To save you time, take advantage of online resume templates and tools. The best resume editor provides a library of professionally designed templates that you can customize with your own information.
Furthermore, starting your own business is another great option! Before launching your business, consider forming an LLC to protect your personal assets from business liabilities. Read up on your state rules around forming an LLC, so you know what to expect.
Manage Fatigue With a Self-Care Mindset
During stressful times—or a stressful life—it’s important to maintain a self-care mindset. Turn your attention and energy toward daily actions that make a positive difference in your life. Focus on all the things you can control and forget about everything else. For example, make time on a regular basis for movement, snack on fruits and vegetables, and go to bed early. Importantly, practice setting boundaries without feeling guilty.
Prepare for Unwanted Outcomes
Directing your focus toward self-care can lead to a few unwanted outcomes. Be prepared for these, so you’re not caught off-guard. For example, prioritizing self-care might mean spending less time on household chores and parenting tasks, causing your partner to overcompensate. Talk to your partner about your needs so you can come up with a self-care strategy that works for everyone in your household.
Another risk involves relying on self-help techniques for treating mental health concerns. While mild depression and anxiety can be managed through self-care, it may be better to seek professional help if you’re dealing with severe and chronic symptoms. Under-treating mental health concerns can lead to persistent problems with fatigue that only worsen as the symptoms weigh on you.
Parental fatigue can be debilitating. If you’re feeling the effects of chronic fatigue, make a personal treatment plan so you can start feeling like yourself again. Embrace a self-care mindset and make time for personal goals, like changing careers or building a business. As you take daily, consistent steps to make self-care a priority, your energy will rebound and your zest for life will be back on the rise!
– Article and Resources Contribution by Jason Kenner
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To your self-care!
Sources:
The impact of parental burnout
How to Balance Family Life With Personal Goals
A Self-Care Mindset During Stressful Times
Self-Care With a Side of Guilt
3 Techniques for Identifying and Communicating Self-Care Needs
