Stress Management Tips for the Working (and Stressed) Mom

Chronic stress can be a killer. Stress contributes to sleepless nights, depression, anxiety, weight gain or loss, mood swings, irritability, high blood pressure, and rapid heart rate. It can also result in physical conditions, such as heart attack, stroke, and Type II diabetes.

As a working mother, whether outside the home or remotely, most responsibilities, if not all, fall on your shoulders. You know what needs to be done, and you do it, but are you short-changing yourself? Are you stretched too thin? These stress management tips can help you balance the fine line between Supermom and the woman within.

Stress Management Tips for Mothers

You can beat chronic stress by learning to balance your responsibilities and demands with self-care. Self-care is not selfish, nor does it need to take time away from your family. Many people think self-care is manicures and pedicures or a spa day, and it could be, but self-care includes any activities that bring you joy and allow you to restore your energy.

Have you noticed that you feel drained and frazzled when you pour out too much of your energy for others, even loved ones? Stress management tips are ways you can incorporate self-care into your daily routine. Choose a few stress management tips to try today and have fun giving yourself the present of happiness and joy.

Always start the night before

You can reduce a great deal of stress by starting your day the night before. If you find yourself running around in the mornings, gathering your children’s lost items, finding your keys, and forgetting your lunch, starting the night before might be a solution.

After dinner and kitchen clean up, spend fifteen minutes laying out outfits, including shoes and bags, for everyone for the next day. Decide what you plan to eat for dinner the next night, and if needed, move ingredients from the freezer to the refrigerator to defrost. Pack your lunch and place everything else in a spot near the door. This short evening routine will make the next day run smoothly.

Embrace the morning

That snooze alarm is tempting. However, you can worsen stress by hitting it repeatedly, as it disrupts your sleep cycle, making you more tired and groggy when you do get up. Instead, try going to bed fifteen minutes earlier every week until you reach a time that works for you.

For example, most people need seven to nine hours of sleep to recharge and recover from the day fully. If you usually go to bed around 11 PM and get up at 5 AM, consider moving your bedtime back to 10:45 PM for one week, then to 10:30 PM the following week.

Work your way to 10 PM or even 9:30 PM to give yourself time to fall asleep. Moving the time back in increments makes it easier to adjust. This will also work on your tired children who have trouble going to bed on time.

Set clear boundaries

We want to please our loved ones. Making people happy may be a part of who you are, willing to serve and help. Unfortunately, as mothers, we can commit to doing too much. Before we know it, we have filled our days with other people’s schedules, leaving little time for ourselves. This may be fine temporarily, but eventually, the stress will overwhelm us.

Learn to set clear boundaries. Be realistic about what you can do and what you cannot. Don’t be afraid to tell people no. You can always say, “I’m sorry. That sounds great, but it doesn’t work for me at this time.” This answer is not offensive and lets the person know you cannot commit to it right now. If the person gets angry, then their reaction is on them, not you. Learn to prioritize your own emotional and mental health by instilling boundaries.

Choose words to live by

Live intentionally. You were not placed on this earth to live each day as if it were drudgery. You may have heard of the practice of choosing a word for the year to help guide you in your decisions. You do not have to wait until New Year’s Day to pick a few words to focus on. Start today and start small.

Instead of focusing on the next twelve months, how about the next 30 days? How do you want to live over the next month? Choose a word or two that incorporates a feeling. Perhaps you want to focus on saving money, so you choose the word ‘simple’ to capture the simplicity of life.

Or, if you are working toward a promotion at work, maybe your word is “powerful,” “diligent,” or “professional.” If you want to slow down and embrace each day, you could choose “luxurious” or “peaceful.” When you make decisions, say your word. Does your decision fit into the life you are trying to create? If not, draw a line and say no.

Make exercise as consistent as bathing

Exercise is a natural mood booster and antidepressant. Most of us make exercise a low priority. Still, it has many benefits, including lowering stress, regulating mood and heart rate, lowering blood pressure, improving the cardiorespiratory system, improving balance, and strengthening bones.

Treat exercise like bathing; make it a regular part of your daily routine. Choose a time of day that works with your energy levels and work out for 15 minutes. Increase time, distance, or intensity as you progress. If you feel tired, remember that exercise reenergizes you and helps you to sleep better at night. Commit to 15 to 20 minutes of exercise a day for 30 days and record how you feel.

Give yourself break times

Are you a mom who issues a time-out? Do you make your smaller children take naps when they are super tired? You need to give yourself a break, too. You might not be able to nap, but you can spend five, ten, or fifteen minutes sitting down and doing something peaceful.

For example, spend fifteen minutes reading a novel, sipping a cup of tea or coffee, or writing in your journal. If you can spare more time, stream a sitcom or watch funny animal videos to distract you and make you feel good.

Practice time management

Do you procrastinate? Maybe you are a perfectionist and cannot start a project without finishing it perfectly. Time management skills are necessary in balancing work and home life. You need to accept that tasks can get done, even if imperfectly. Sometimes, completing a task on time is more important than trying to make the task meet your unrealistic standards.

If you are procrastinating on a task, break it down into smaller tasks if possible and schedule it into your planner. Give yourself twenty-five minutes of uninterrupted time on the task, then take a five-minute break. Repeat this cycle, known as the Pomodoro technique, until you have completed the task. You may find that you can file your taxes online in 20 minutes or paint the back porch in three twenty-five-minute sessions. Make a game out of it. How many sessions will it take you?

Delete and delegate

Deleting and delegating tasks is a part of time management and setting boundaries. Not every task and responsibility needs to fall onto ‘Supermom’. It is not realistic, nor mentally healthy, to think you can do it all.

List your tasks and responsibilities. Now, choose the ones you must do and delegate or delete the others. Moving them to different days is okay, but allowing others to help with tasks and chores will lower your stress and anxiety. Try not to criticize or redo a task someone has performed. For example, if someone offers to load the dishwasher, do not go behind them and reload it as you would. Accept their offer graciously.

Christian Counseling for Overwhelming Stress

If overwhelming stress interferes with your daily life, contact our center today to schedule a session with a Christian counselor. Your counselor can provide you with more stress management tips steeped in psychology and combined with faith-based principles. Reach out to us today to get started.