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Preventing Burnout
The Importance of Taking Personal Vacations, Mini Breaks and Afternoons Off
By Teri Brown
According to Palitz, those in "helping professions" are continually reminded to emphasize balance and self-care in order to avoid burnout. This includes moms. In order to avoid burnout, they need to spend some time thinking only about what is best for them. "I encourage all my mom-clients to be direct and ask their spouses, partners, friends and family members to help give them a break, whether it is to go out for the evening or to take off for the weekend," Palitz says. "It doesn't have to be expensive; it just needs to be away. The only thing Mom needs to do is be prepared to return the favor sometime."
It is important to get Dad on board in achieving balance in the family and this can be accomplished, in part, by giving Mom time alone. Palitz advises parents to work as a team to create balance in their families. "This includes time together, time as a couple and, yes, time away as an individual," Palitz says. "This time may be spent with friends or alone, but rest assured, it is not frivolous – it is essential."
Patricia M. Berliner is a licensed psychologist in private practice, as well as the author of Touching Your Lifethread and Revaluing the Feminine: A Process of Psychospiritual Change (Cloverdale Press, 2007). "No one can give without replenishing or having replenished energy, love, purpose, dedication," she says. "To lose oneself in giving to others is to lose everything, and then what is there to give? And if Mom is depleted, how can she truly give lovingly, and generously? And where will the energy come from? Often, mothers think it is selfish to give to themselves, but self-care makes good sense if we allow ourselves to engage in finding out what we need, value and what replenishes us. Most of the time, it is the simple things that are the most fun, satisfying."
