Parenting Burnout: When Parents Don’t Wanna

Parenting burnout can sneak up on you. Some days, all it takes is one more book marketer on social media to send you over the edge.

It had been a long week.

Our son was sick and hadn’t been sleeping properly, so I’d had about four sleepless nights in a row. He also wasn’t able to attend daycare, so I hadn’t had my usual “days off” to recover.

I’d been coping really well considering, but then I woke up on Sunday and I think it had finally all caught up with me. I felt exhausted and clouded in a brain fog that just wouldn’t clear with caffeine.

Luckily, it was my day to sleep in, so I stayed in bed for a bit, scrolling through my phone. Then I got hit with another message from a so-called book marketer on X (Twitter).

This wouldn’t usually get to me so much, but I was just not in the mood for stupid people that day.

I knew it was going to be a rough day, so I decided we’d skip our usual outing and stay at home… when I discovered we were out of bread and would need to get some before the end of the day.

Looks like we were going out!

I live in Perth, and as much as I love it, sometimes it can be a bit backwards. On Sundays, regular supermarkets don’t open until 11 a.m. I wanted to get this trip over and done with, so I decided to go to one of our convenience-store supermarkets that are open extended hours. If I was going to do this, I needed coffee. So, I packed our son into the car and we went to one of our local cafés.

Yes, cafés are open on Sunday before 11 a.m.... well, some are anyway.

I usually just get my old faithful iced latte, but as I was feeling a little off, I decided to treat myself.

Being a parent, I can’t just stop and take a rest day, so I have to find satisfaction in the small things.

That’s when I saw the words on the menu:

Biscoff Iced Latte

I knew that was exactly what I needed.

They brought it out to the table, and it was glorious! Cream, caramel and Biscoff flowing down the sides with a Biscoff biscuit bathing in the deliciousness on top. I took a sip of the smooth, creamy coffee mixture, and for a second, all my tiredness went away.

And then it was time to drive to the supermarket.

We stepped back outside and it was cold, wet and raining.

Boom! Tired, grumpy fog back.

We got our bread and managed to make it home without getting too wet. Luckily, it was time for lunch and then it would be nap time for our son.

I usually spend nap times working on my Vocal stories, but this Sunday I decided to take a rare day off and watch a horror movie. My husband and I both love movies, so when we built our house, we made sure to include a home theatre room. It’s cosy, dark, and has the most comfortable recliners, perfect for hiding away on a rainy day.

I picked a movie that I’ve seen many times before: I Know What You Did Last Summer. Ideal for zoning out to.

After the movie was over, I emerged from the theatre room still feeling as foggy as ever, but I felt a little happier for taking time out for myself.

Our son woke and the rest of the day went by without any major issues. We put him down for bed that night and snuggled up in our home theatre again to watch another movie.

I had a better sleep that night and woke feeling like the fog had lifted. I was also happy to discover that I’d had a couple of new Vocal subscribers and some nice comments on my stories, which reminded me the world won’t forget about me if I take a day off every now and then.

As a parent, self-care might have to come in the form of a pimped-up coffee and a horror movie squeezed into nap time, but it just might be enough to remind you that you’re important too.