Parental burnout

What Parental Burnout Is

The term ‘parental burnout’ in research refers to the condition of a parent who, overwhelmed by a lack of resources both physically and emotionally/cognitively, finds themselves deeply questioning their abilities in their parenting role, resulting in emotional detachment from their children. In burnout, the parent ends up limiting themselves to attending only to the functional aspects of childcare, such as bathing, dressing, feeding, etc.

Research on this phenomenon has identified three characteristic aspects, adapted from studies of occupational burnout:

1. Relational detachment
2. Exhaustion of emotional resources
3. Perceived inadequacy in the parenting role

Although these three aspects are adapted from occupational burnout research, the correlation between the two phenomena is low to moderate, meaning the two types of burnout may or may not occur simultaneously.

Symptoms of Parental Burnout

Among the most common signs, which therefore deserve particular attention, are:

• Fatigue and asthenia
• Disturbed sleep with frequent awakenings
• Difficulty in emotional contact with children
• Irritability
• Almost constant alertness and worry
• Negative mental rumination

Furthermore, parental burnout is often associated with thoughts of escape, abandoning children, and neglectful or violent behaviors toward them. Research has highlighted that these manifestations are independent of parents’ socioeconomic status and can occur even in unexpected situations. All these signals indicate a condition of difficulty requiring specialist intervention, and one should not hesitate to seek help.

Spread of the Phenomenon

Some studies have estimated that in Europe parental burnout affects between 2% and 12% of the population, with 18% of mothers at risk. Additionally, the phenomenon seems to affect younger parents more easily, while older parents are less at risk of experiencing a lack of fulfillment. Research has also found that risk factors differ between fathers and mothers and therefore vary according to context.

Finally, the various experiences of isolation during the Covid-19 pandemic, with forced cohabitation and limited mobility, contributed to strengthening the risk factors for parental burnout.

Learning and Preventing Parental Burnout

While it is always necessary to consult mental healthWhat is meant by mental health? According to the World Healt... More specialists in the case of persistent signs, training in parenting with appropriate strategies can be an effective preventive approach.

Here are some elements to keep in mind:

Taking Care of Ourselves

The starting point for any healthy change is to direct warm attention toward ourselves. The actions through which we express the ability to care for ourselves can sometimes be very subjective, tied to our personal experiences, while others are generalizable to most cases. Among the latter are attention to nutrition, mindful movement, and sleep quality, especially when quantity is necessarily limited.

More subjective actions may include anything that connects us with our emotions and aspirations: practicing meditationThere are many ways to define meditation, but perhaps the si... More, yoga, a hobby, or time with friends. Even when available time for these activities is very limited, they will still be effective in improving psycho-physical well-being.

Cultivating a state of serenity will help us be more welcoming toward ourselves, able to mediate between ideal models and daily difficulties, seeking the balance point in which we can best express who we are moment by moment.

Educating Ourselves About Relationships

We can do this both within the family unit – by seeking solutions to distribute workloads within the couple and, for smaller tasks, even among the children – but also outside the family, reminding ourselves that life is above all about relationships and no one can do without the help of others. Building or strengthening a support network with extended family, friends, and the social context can be extraordinarily supportive and enriching.