Ten Ways to Keep You From Burning Out
I read an article that read “Overburdened and stressed-out women are not hard to find, according to articles and blogs nationwide. Look in the mirror, or talk to your best friend or neighbor, and you will discover another household taskmaster who is juggling work, volunteering, raising kids, and managing every detail that falls between morning and night. Experts have a name for it: Mental overload, the process in which women who multitask as the CEO of the household try to balance ridiculously busy lives. Underlying the managing of digital calendars, chauffeuring kids to piano lessons and meeting work deadlines is the emotional labor women undergo to manage the feelings and emotions of everyone circling within their orbit—and all of this adds up to serious emotional and physical tolls. This health scenario affects all women of all ages and lifestyles, experts say. But there are many things women can do to alleviate stress and find balance, including exercise, meditation and advocating for their own health.”
That's me and many other women I know. We're juggling many to-do lists on a daily basis with little time left to ourselves to focus on us!
So, what are we going to do about it?
Well, I’m giving back to me. I’m dedicating specific times each week to complete workouts, meditate, and rest. I’m taking naps during the day when I just feel so exhausted, I can’t go on. Each week I focus on a specific self-care regimen for me and my daughter. I want her to learn early what it means to put herself first.
Below is a list of other things we overextended women can do to get back and give back to ourselves. I’m embracing some of these as well. Which will you choose?
10 Ways to Ease Your Burden If you’re going to be the family CEO, then act like a CEO by delegating and putting systems into place that will ease your burden. Here are a few ideas to start now.
1. Streamline Meals. Declare standard meals for certain nights of the weeks, such as Meatless Monday, Taco Tuesday or Spaghetti Wednesday, and then delegate those meals to other capable members of the family.
2. Get Kids Involved. Delineate clear tasks with a points system (for example: take out the garbage = 1 point, clean the toilets = 3 points, etc.) on written notecards. As each child completes a task, they place the card in a basket. Each card in the basket (or reaching a certain points mark) goes toward a reward.
3. Take Advantage of Convenience. You may just be in the life stage where it makes sense to pay a little more for the pre-cut veggies or to take advantage of a cleaning service or dinner prep service. What is a take that takes up too much of your precious time? There’s probably a convenience item or serve that can make your life easier. Using grocery services are a win too.
4. Do Errands in One Swoop. Make a list of 10 or so errands you must do and knock them out in a single block of time. Pay all bills digitally at the same time. Pick up all cards and gifts for the next month or two in one trip. Make a single or twice monthly trip to the bank, pharmacy or post office.
5. Make Extra Meals. Cook meals in big batches and freeze leftovers for the days when there’s no time or energy to get dinner on the table. Soups, casseroles, pasta dishes and cooked meat all freeze and thaw well.
6. Get Out of Your Head. Make a list of everything that needs to get done in one place (a physical paper list or on your smartphone) in the order of priority. Just writing out the list can relieve stress that you’ll forget something and will give you a clear plan of what to tackle next.
7. Take Naps. I am an advocate of nap taking. It will recharge you with the energy you need to get through the rest the day. Short naps are quite effective too. One study found that "a sleep episode as short as 6 minutes was enough to boost memory performance."
8. Unplug at Night. Every evening, enforce a no-electronics rule for you and anyone in your home where all devices must be closed down at a certain hour. This gives your minds time to unwind and greatly increases your odds of sleeping well.
9. Treat Yourself. Each week, choose something that you’re doing only for yourself, whether it’s an online Pilates or fitness class, meditation session, self-improvement class, lunch or coffee with masked friends, or a trip to the quietest corner of a park.
10. Say No. You can’t do everything, and only you can make the decision about where, when, and how to share your talents, time and energy. Say no the next request or project that doesn’t fit in or bring you joy, and do so unapologetically. “Portions of this post was provided by New Hope Network. I am a member of the New Hope Influencer Co-op, a network of health and wellness bloggers committed to spreading more health to more people.” Excerpt taking from the article "Task Masteress" Article Credit: Julie Marshall