How to Be a Less Stressed Out Mom

Being a mother can be stressful for a variety of reasons. As a woman, you may have to balance several areas of life, including parenting, working, taking care of household chores and managing personal relationships. You might feel that you don't have enough time in the day to take care of everyone else's needs, let alone your own. However, if you don't take time for yourself, you'll feel more stressed. Before you know it, you might even experience feelings of burnout.

Instructions

• 1

  Get help with daily household chores. If you're married or live with a partner, ask him to sit down with you to make a list of everyday chores. Split up the tasks evenly and if your children are old enough, assign certain chores to them as well.

• 2

  Reduce your children's commitments. According to United Health Care, many moms are stressed because they sign their children up for too many activities. Remember that you'll need to provide transportation and adjust your schedule when your children join extracurricular activities. Limit the number of activities that your children participate in to one or two per season.

• 3

  Be clear about your expectations. Don't expect that your children or your spouse can read your mind. If you want something done, state it explicitly. If you want your husband to cook dinner on Friday night, tell him that, instead of vaguely hinting that it would be nice if he cooked dinner once in a while.

• 4

  Prioritize your responsibilities. Don't try to accomplish everything at once. For example, if the phone rings and you're cooking dinner, let the phone ring or ask someone else to answer it. If you answer the phone, you can easily become distracted and burn dinner, causing you even more stress and aggravation. You don't have to be responsible for handling everything at the same time.

• 5

  Incorporate time for yourself into your schedule. It's not selfish, it's necessary. You might try to avoid this by saying you don't have time or that everyone else's needs come first. Remember that you are not doing anyone else a favor by neglecting your own needs. Schedule a relaxing massage, join a gym or take a hot bath after work. Let your family know that you're not to be disturbed during "me" time unless it's an emergency.