Mommy Burnout audiobook

When I think of self-help books, I think one of three things. 1- it is going to be a lot of new-age hippie mumbo jumbo about the healing powers of essential oils or getting in touch with the Earth or some other opinions with no actual proven efficacy. 2- it will tell you all the thinks you do wrong and belittle you for doing them wrong to begin with. 3- It will be so completely full of studies and technical facts that it will be extremely dry and therefore not useful at all. This book was none of those things and all of those things at the same time. The author combines all the best parts of typical self-help and completely avoids being condescending or overly scientific. She perfectly blends stories from her private practice with studies and statistics from well reputed sources and stories of her own personal struggles, missteps, and successes. Her writing is both entertaining and helpful. Though I am not currently experiencing "mommy burnout", I am dealing with PPD. I feel like this book has given me ways to handle my current issue as well as ways to avoid future burnout. I'm 100% positive I will be including this with all future baby shower gifts and I highly recommend all parents read this even if you don't feel like it is currently relevant to you. You never know when you will be about to help a friend.I won an advance copy of this book thru Goodreads Giveaways.

I usually find a lot to complain about with self help books, but I really enjoyed this one. Dr. Ziegler presented real life case studies in each chapter from her therapy practice, and I found the examples to be relatable and interesting. Her chapters are centered around themes - building a support network, healthy social media use, work/life balance, for example, and she presents a “prescription plan” for each topic. I thought her advice was practical and realistic, and refreshingly lacking the “woo” and touchy feely nonsense prevalent in so many advice books written for women.

“Instead of striving to he the best mom, strive to be the mom that your child needs.” In the current climate with how much moms have on our plates and the expectations to be perfect, I am glad I picked up this book. I enjoyed the personal anecdotes and stories scattered throughout the book and found them so relatable. I will try very hard to set down the martyrdom expectation and take the suggestions from the book. It was semi-repetitive, so that’s why it got a 4 from me. But reading this book felt like free therapy.

Another audio book! Most of this was really good and offered some good tips and things to look into if you are feeling overwhelmed. I like how she address the idea of anxiety and depression and how it can totally impact your parenting style and the behaviors of your children. Good read for someone trying to slow down and reclaim some of themselves.

I really enjoyed this book. It made me feel like I’m not alone and have some good actionable steps to feel less overwhelmed. Not a replacement for therapy and won’t help with huge issues but it was super helpful for me.

OH man this book was AMAZING. It was very rare that while I was reading it I felt like she was lecturing me or telling me I was being a bad mom for x, y or z. It was a this is the facts of being a Mom and here is a story of a Mom (or 2) who have experienced this. There was also the fact that, yes, these things CAN impact your children but I really didn't feel like I was being attacked during any of those parts. It's a fact of life and a fact of being a Mommy (well, a parent) that your kids will mimic you. While this book is targeted towards moms, and there are definitely things that really only apply to Moms in this book I really truly feel that this is a book that could be good for all parents who experience stress- or feel like they can never win with being a parent. Now for a quote that REALLY spoke to me (at the very end of the book of course)"One of the things that helps guide me as a therapist and as a parent is remembering the legacy that I want to leave for my kids. Part of the legacy that I'm leaving for my children is to show them that mistakes are part of life. And that after I fail at something, I just try again. That I learn from my mistakes. And can laugh at most of them." and of course the question of how do you want YOUR kids to remember you- as the person who was always cranky or frazzled or something else?

This is definitely a must-read for every overwhelmed mom. So many of the ladies in my mommy-cohort (of similarly-aged children) have expressed their stress, anxiety, and general overwhelm to me. Many seeking pharmacological or herbal remedies from their doctors or naturopaths. My own stress comes from trying to maintain a demanding career as a software engineer while also being at home, during the pandemic, with a two-year-old. Let's just say...it has not gone well.Ziegler is a child and family therapist who began to see a pattern in her work of troubled children who had stressed out mothers. She began to see many mothers on their own, talking about the crippling stress and overwhelm that dogged their everyday and left their brains' foggy. Over time she was able to identify the commonalities between them, hence developing the term mommy burnout--similar to brain burnout, which is commonly used to describe chronic, work-related stress.In Mommy Burnout, Ziegler not only shares the common symptoms and remedies for mommy burnout, but also ways to help identify if you might be in need of further assistance. This all while sharing a handful of relatable patient stories that illustrate different mommy burnout scenarios.

I could relate to so much of this book. I was deep in the throes of mommy burnout when my daughter was much younger. While my mental health has gotten much better, I can feel burnout lurking in the background, ready to sink its teeth in if I let my guard down. Reading Dr. Ziegler's take on this issue and realizing that it's such a common problem gave me a sense of relief -- and, oddly, a feeling of belonging.Thanks to reading this book, I reached out to a few girlfriends and reignited friendships I'd let lapse because I thought I was "too busy" to keep up with them. Now I understand that those kinds of relationships are critical to my ability to parent well. It also really helps to be reminded that when I suffer, my child suffers, too. She learns so much about life by watching me, including how to cope with stress.I wish the book had more specific suggestions for dealing with mommy burnout when it happens. Still, I also acknowledge that every mom, and every family, is different.Ultimately, Dr. Ziegler points out that investing in self-care, having a handful of good mom friends, cultivating a sense of purpose, and being present for your child are the keys to unlocking good mental health - and a good parenting experience. And that was precisely the message I needed.

For starters, I am not a mother. I picked this book up because the description interested me and just generally have been striving to read more non-fiction. I do work 60+ hour weeks, so I thought the "busy tips" could still be applicable to me. I found this book extremely interesting even without having children. I picked up on a lot that I have noticed in friends who are mothers and made mental notes for when I do have kids someday. I did find myself rolling my eyes more on the chapter about husbands, which was really my only issue with the book. I thought her perspectives on working mothers and stay-at-home mothers was extremely insightful (maybe just because I've never experienced either first-hand) and it gave me a new perspective on that choice mothers make and how it's truly not easier for either position. Maybe it was common sense, but how these issues affect our kids today compared to the past was particularly interesting to me. I will say she didn't have a ton of quality recommendations and research but overall I thoroughly enjoyed this book, even if it was a odd one for me to usually read, and would recommend to anyone with or without kids!

4/5 Listened to this book while driving. I think it was really interesting and the points she made were great and easy to implement. I appreciated her knowledge and the scientific facts about all she brought up. The parts I didn’t like were the swearing when she did the dialogue with her patients. I loved the format of one case/person per chapter and a lesson that went along with that person’s issues and problems. I learned that creating your “village” is important. Reaching out to those in similar situations is important. I also loved the chapter on social media as well as options. She brought up a point about how we have so many options now a days that it gives us more anxiety because the opportunity loss is greater. The more options we have to give up the less happier we are with the one we choose. Thinking about this book more and more I feel like I learned and absorbed a lot of great things that I think will make me a better mom and realize my limits. I also feel like I will better be able to avoid burn out in the future!

This book was very eye-opening and relatable for me. I definitely learned a lot from the anecdotes of different moms, but they did get really overwhelming some times. I could have done with fewer stories and more prescriptive suggestions.My takeaways off the top of my head:1. Make quality mom friendships a priority2. Maintain other family relationships, but don't expect them to stand in as friends. Talking to your husband like you would a girl friend does not work. We communicate differently.3. Don't make being busy a badge of honor. Find ways to cut back on commitments and multi-tasking. This will likely require lowering your expectations and asking for help. Do it anyway. Set boundaries between work and family time. 4. Your kids' depression, anxiety, and other social and behavioral problems can be a reflection of your own unhealthy methods of coping with stress. Helping yourself will help the whole family. Stop trying to be "the best" mom and be the mom they need.

I was immediately fascinated by the title of this book. I’m past the child rearing age but I have an interest in helping my son and daughter-in-law navigate this pothole filled road. I think every mommy, no matter the age, will either personally relate or be able to see some of her friends in these scenarios. Dr. Ziegler weaves fascinating statistics and strategies throughout and encourages the reader to acknowledge that while Mommy Burnout is not a medical diagnosis it is a very real occurrence. If a mother or father can spot the initial symptoms be proactive in their approach to childcare, realistic in their expectations, and actively share household responsibilities then much of the fallout from mommy burnout can be mitigated. The fallout, as Dr. Ziegler describes, is that the children suffer the consequences. This book is a must read for every parent out there.

All the advice in here is spot-on, and yet... it's missing one chapter. It's missing a last chapter called "What do I do if it's still not enough?" It could be a very short chapter, because the answer is "Find a therapist and tell your doctor." (Obviously that's easier said than done, so maybe there'd be a little more to the chapter.)I had tried so many of the things she recommended, and they all helped me cope, but when the pandemic stripped away every support I had, I finally got around to actually going back to the doctor (problem 1) and bringing up how I felt (problem 2). For me, all those things are still good and necessary, but without an anti-depressant, I would still be wallowing in despair and self-loathing. So if you read everything here and you try a few and you're still stuck, your brain just might need a little help balancing its chemicals.

I am not generally one for personal development books as I find them overwhelming. However, this pandemic has made self-care and any “me time” essentially non existent. I am definitely finding myself feeling burnt out more and more often. So this title caught my eye. It was a good listen. The author makes a plethora of good points about how stress and a consistent excess of stress negatively impacts our lives AND also touches the lives of our children, parents, significant others. I don’t want to see my poor coping mechanisms manifest in my children. I want to show and demonstrate healthy ways to handle stress and adversity. There were many situations Dr. Ziegler discussed that I could say “no, that truthfully isn’t my situation” but I could SEE how the mother/family got to that point. It felt like a great proactive read!

Real life stories from real people placed around simple strategies to relieve your own mommy burn out makes this book stand out from other parenting books. Written in a non-judgmental tone makes absorbing the information easier and more appealing. Key take always:1. Take a look at the amount of time you use social media and learn to cut back. 2. Take advice from other mothers as guidelines not rules, because if it fails it will feed into your burn out. 3. Limit your choices in your daily life. - Be clear on wants vs needs, make decisions when you have the most energy and stop multitasking. Relatable and encouraging, a book worth reading. Recommended not only to moms already in mommy burn out, but also for mothers who are beginning to feel overwhelmed.

I did quite enjoy this book and clearly am experiencing some mommy burnout myself as I found myself crying and having eye-opening moments when reflecting on myself and my family. It is nice to put a name to what I’ve been experiencing. I did take a lot from this book… useful little tidbits. It’s easy to read and I like that it was written in a story format but about specific clients. It made it a bit more relatable I think. I do think it should maybe be updated to include a wider variety of types of relationships and not just male-female. Overall, I liked it and would consider recommending it to other mommy friends.