Refilling Your Cup: Preventing Burnout Before It Starts

Learn healthy coping skills to help manage your busy family and yourself

Can you believe it’s already November? Most families are firmly entrenched in juggling a slew of extracurricular activities and practice; often several times a week with multiple children, along with the regular routine of school, homework, part-time jobs for the kids, and work for the parents. There might be speech, occupational or physical therapy sessions and extracurricular activities at school, caregiving for elderly parents, taking care of the family pet, extended family obligations … and the holidays are fast-approaching (your child may already know how many sleeps), with all the planning and organizing that go with them.

No wonder so many parents – and kids – are anxious, overwhelmed, and stressed. To make things worse, our kids pick up on our stress, and it increases theirs, and vice-versa. 

By practicing self-care and modelling healthy coping strategies for our children, we can reverse that cycle and calm everyone down.

Here are some ways to get started:

1. Set boundaries, learn to say no, and delegate. As parents, we can develop the mentality that the world would stop if we don’t do everything. It won’t. We can stop hovering over our children as they do their homework, and they will pick up the slack. We can say no to chairing three committees at school, and focus on just one. The same is true for our children’s after-school activities. If you’re feeling stretched too thin by all the activities, there’s a good chance your child is too. We can – and should – let our children help around the house, even if they don’t do things exactly the way we do. They’ll get better if we stay out of their way.

   
   

2. Stay connected. When we’re running from one after-school activity to another, it’s easy to get into the habit of eating on the run. But family dinners are important in helping build connections in our families, and research shows that they can benefit our kids in many ways. Regular family meals can improve our children’s self-esteem and school success, reduce feelings of depression, and decrease alcohol and substance use. In the long-run, taking the time to eat together will reduce stress for everyone.

   
   

3. Slow down and stop multitasking. With our minds going in multiple directions at once; responding to a text from one child while having a conversation with another, for example, we sometimes multitask ourselves out of ever being fully present. While once thought of as a productivity booster, current research suggests that multitasking actually reduces productivity and adds to stress and anxiety. Instead, slow down and give what you’re doing your full attention, whether it’s eating dinner, having a conversation with your child, or texting someone.

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Laura LaRocca was previously the coordinator at Dufferin Parent Support Network. If you have questions regarding this article, email us at info@parentsupportnetwork.ca