Let's be honest. How many of us have started the day already feeling behind?
You've got work deadlines, family responsibilities, appointments to schedule, people counting on you, a household to manage, and somewhere in there, you're supposed to find time to exercise, eat well, get enough sleep, maintain relationships, and maybe do something just for yourself.
And if you're anything like many women I talk to, you're also carrying the mental load of remembering everything, anticipating everyone's needs, and making sure nothing falls through the cracks.
Sound familiar?
We often joke about being busy, having too much on our plates, or needing a vacation from our vacations. But underneath the humor is something worth paying attention to.
Burnout has become so normalized that many women don't recognize how depleted they actually are until something forces them to stop.
The invisible load women carry
Burnout isn't simply being tired after a long week. It's the cumulative effect of prolonged stress without adequate recovery. It can show up as persistent exhaustion, difficulty concentrating, disrupted sleep, irritability, loss of motivation, and feeling disconnected from things you once enjoyed.
And while workplace demands contribute significantly, work is often only one piece of the picture.
Many women are balancing professional responsibilities with caregiving, parenting, household management, community involvement, and relationships. Add personal ambitions, financial responsibilities, and the desire to continue growing and developing, and it's easy to see how the demands accumulate.
Research has highlighted some of these differences.
A 2023 Pew Research Center study found that women continue to shoulder a greater share of household responsibilities, even as their financial contributions to the family have increased. The original article also points to differences in caregiving and housework responsibilities.
And the workplace isn't necessarily providing relief. A 2024 report discussed by Fortune highlighted that nearly half of working women experience symptoms of burnout.
This isn't about suggesting women should have fewer ambitions or lower expectations for themselves. Quite the opposite.
You shouldn't have to sacrifice your health to build a life you love.
Self-care isn't another item on your to-do list
I want to challenge something I see frequently: treating self-care as one more responsibility to squeeze into an already overloaded schedule.
We tell ourselves we'll start exercising when things slow down, eat better when we have more time, get more sleep after this busy season, or take a break once everyone else is taken care of.
But when does that actually happen?
There will always be another deadline, another commitment, another person who needs something.
The goal isn't to do less with your life or abandon the things that matter to you.
It's to become more intentional about how you're spending your energy and what you're willing to sacrifice along the way.
Here are three places to start:
1. Reevaluate your boundaries.
Learn to recognize where you're overextending yourself. Sometimes the biggest challenge isn't that other people are asking too much of us. It's that we've become so accustomed to saying yes that we don't stop to consider whether we actually have the capacity.
It's okay to say no. It's okay to ask for help. It's okay to let someone else handle something, even if they don't do it exactly the way you would.
2. Stop putting your well-being at the bottom of the list.
Your physical and mental well-being are not separate from your ability to show up professionally, care for your family, and pursue your goals.
Movement, nourishing food, restorative sleep, stress management, and activities that bring you enjoyment aren't luxuries. They're part of the foundation that allows you to function and thrive.
Start small. Consistency matters more than perfection.
3. Build relationships that support you.
We all need people who understand us, encourage us, challenge our thinking, and remind us that we're not alone.
Sometimes we need a perspective outside of our immediate family, workplace, or circle of friends. Having a supportive community can make a tremendous difference, especially when we're navigating change or feeling stuck.
And remember, you don't always have to be the strong one.
A little reflection
I want to leave you with a few questions to consider this week.
Where in your life are you giving more energy than you realistically have?
What responsibilities are you carrying that could be shared, delegated, or simply let go?
What have you been putting off because you believe everyone else needs you first?
If you continued living at your current pace for another year, how would you feel?
That last question is worth sitting with.
Sometimes we don't need another productivity hack, another planner, or another strategy for squeezing more into our day.
Sometimes we need to step back, take an honest look at how we're living, and decide what needs to change.
I believe we can be ambitious, successful, generous, connected, and deeply involved in the lives of others without running ourselves into the ground.
But it requires intention. It requires recognizing our limits, making different choices, and sometimes being willing to disappoint people when we need to prioritize ourselves.
You deserve to thrive, not just keep everything and everyone else afloat.
Let's stop normalizing burnout and start creating lives that support the people we're becoming.
And let's remember that we don't have to figure it all out alone.
— Misty Deal, RN, HN-BC, HWNC-BC
Founder, Guardian Nurse Consulting
Further Reading & References
The following resources informed this article and offer additional perspectives and practical information:
Original article: Emma Reeve, The Burnout Struggle among Women in the Workplace, October 11, 2024. Emma Reeve on LinkedIn.
Pew Research Center (April 13, 2023): In a Growing Share of U.S. Marriages, Husbands and Wives Earn About the Same.
Mayo Clinic: Stress relievers: Tips to tame stress.
Forbes (2022): Women Continuing to Face Alarmingly High Levels of Burnout, Stress in the New Normal of Work.
Forbes Human Resources Council: How to Support Women in the Workplace and Be an Ally.
Morgan Stanley Research: Gender Diversity and Business Performance.