Being a mom is a full-time job with no clocking out, and some days, it feels like you’re barely holding it together. Between sleepless nights, endless responsibilities, and the mental load of running a household, it’s no wonder so many moms feel like they’re on the brink of madness. If you’re wondering whether you’re just overwhelmed or slowly losing your mind, these signs might hit a little too close to home.
1. You Haven’t Slept Properly In Two Decades

Sleep has become more of a distant memory than a reality. From the newborn nights of round-the-clock feedings to toddlers with nightmares and teenagers who come home too late, you’ve spent years adjusting to everyone else’s schedule but your own. According to The Guardian, new parents face up to six years of sleep deprivation. Even when everyone is asleep, your mind races with to-do lists, forgotten school forms, and endless responsibilities. Coffee has become a lifeline, and yet it barely scratches the surface of your exhaustion. You wake up more tired than when you went to bed, wondering how long you can keep running on empty. The idea of eight uninterrupted hours feels mythical, and naps are out of the question because there’s always something to be done.
Over time, sleep deprivation stops feeling temporary—it feels permanent like it’s now part of your DNA. Even the rare night you do sleep through, you wake up mentally replaying the previous day’s chaos. It’s not just exhaustion—it’s emotional and mental fatigue that never disappears. And while others tell you to “just get some rest,” you secretly wonder how you’ve survived this long without it.
2. You’re Burned Out Trying To Juggle Work And Parenting
Balancing work and parenting is a full-on juggling act, and it feels like you’re dropping the balls more often than not. Your mornings start with packing lunches, refereeing sibling arguments, and racing out the door, only to dive straight into work mode. When your workday ends, your second shift begins—dinner, homework, bedtime, and cleaning up the chaos left behind. There’s no pause button, no off switch, just a constant state of running from one obligation to the next. You try to do everything well, but the truth is, you feel like you’re failing at all of it. According to Early Childhood Hub, the best advice is to plan ahead and set small, realistic goals.
The burnout doesn’t just affect your energy levels—it creeps into your mental health, leaving you irritable, forgetful, and questioning how other moms seem to make it look so easy. Even on the rare days when you get a break, the guilt for not being “productive” nags at you. You’re constantly being pulled in a million directions, and no matter how hard you try, there’s never enough time to do everything. You don’t just want balance—you need it, but it feels impossible to achieve in your current state of survival mode.
3. You’re Overstimulated And Reaching For The Vino At 5 PM
By mid-afternoon, your senses feel like they’ve gone through a blender. Between the noise of kids arguing, toys clattering, and the dog barking at everything that moves, it feels like your brain is on the verge of short-circuiting. Even the touch of sticky hands or crumbs underfoot can make you feel like crawling out of your skin. Every loud sound feels amplified, every question feels like an interrogation, and the chaos of your home feels like an overwhelming carnival you can’t escape. That’s because moms tend to bear the emotional load of the family, according to Conscious Mommy.
That’s when the thought of wine (or any other relaxing beverage) starts to feel less like indulgence and more like survival. You need a moment to decompress, to remind yourself that you’re more than the chaos swirling around you. But before you can even pour a glass, someone asks, “What’s for dinner?” and the madness resumes. When bedtime finally rolls around, you’re so overstimulated that the silence feels almost unsettling. You don’t necessarily need wine; you just need quiet, calm, and a little reminder that you’re still a person underneath the noise.
4. You Resent Your Partner For Not Noticing How Much You Do
It’s not that you don’t love your partner—you’re tired of feeling like they don’t see how much you’re carrying. They don’t seem to notice the endless mental load of remembering appointments, organizing schedules, and managing the household. While you’re drowning in responsibilities, they casually ask, “What’s for dinner?” like that’s the most pressing issue of the day. You wonder how they can sit on the couch while you’re picking up toys, folding laundry, and cleaning up another mess.
The resentment starts to build, not because you don’t care about them, but because it feels like they don’t care enough about how hard you’re working. You dream of the day they’ll step up without being asked or recognize the invisible labor you do daily. And while you try not to keep score, it’s hard not to notice how uneven the balance feels. Sometimes, you want to scream, “Do you even see me?” Instead, you swallow the frustration, put your head down, and keep going because someone must.
5. You’ve Started Obsessing Over The Days You Were Single Sans Kids
Some days, your mind drifts to your pre-kid life like it’s a golden era you didn’t appreciate enough at the time. You remember sleeping in until noon, binge-watching TV shows uninterrupted, and going out without a second thought. Back then, your biggest problem was deciding what to eat—not refereeing sibling fights or dealing with a toddler meltdown in Target. It’s not that you don’t love your kids; it’s just that you miss the simplicity of being responsible only for yourself. And you’re not alone in longing for the simpler life or even regretting having kids, like this mother admitted to Kidspot. The nostalgia hits hardest on the days when everything feels overwhelming—like when you’re folding your hundredth load of laundry or stepping on another LEGO.
You’d never trade your family, but it’s hard not to wonder what life would be like if you had a little less chaos. Sometimes, you scroll through old photos, marveling at how carefree you looked before you were “Mom.” It’s bittersweet because, while you love the life you have now, a part of you misses who you were before it all changed.
6. You Forget To Eat Properly Most Days
Eating has become less of a priority and more of an afterthought in your life. You’re too busy making breakfast for everyone else, packing lunches, and cleaning up spills to remember that you haven’t even had a bite. When you notice you’re hungry, it’s mid-afternoon, and you’re scavenging for scraps of whatever your kids left on their plates. Dinner often becomes a rushed bite standing at the kitchen counter because you’re too exhausted to sit down and enjoy a meal. And when you do eat, it’s often something quick and unsatisfying, leaving you even more drained.
You promise yourself that tomorrow will be different, but then the chaos of the day takes over, and it’s the same story again. The idea of cooking something just for yourself feels like a luxury you can’t afford in terms of time or energy. It’s not that you don’t want to eat well—it’s that the demands of motherhood leave no room for it. Over time, this neglect takes a toll, leaving you feeling sluggish and depleted. You know you need to take care of yourself, but it feels impossible when you’re constantly taking care of everyone else.
7. You Have PTSD Just Looking At The School/Sports Schedule
The family calendar has become your biggest source of anxiety. Between school drop-offs, pickups, soccer practice, dance rehearsals, and dentist appointments, your schedule feels more packed than a CEO’s. Just glancing at the calendar gives you heart palpitations because you know there’s no way to fit everything in. You’ve become a logistics master, shuttling kids from one activity to another like an unpaid Uber driver.
But the constant coordination wears you down, and it’s hard not to feel overwhelmed by the never-ending commitments. The thought of forgetting something important keeps you up at night, yet the mental load of remembering everything is crushing. You can’t help but wonder how other parents seem to do it all without losing their minds. You’ve even started fantasizing about canceling everything and having a day of complete stillness. But, of course, you push through because the kids are counting on you, even if it’s at the expense of your sanity.
8. You Feel Disillusioned About Life And Motherhood
Motherhood isn’t quite what you imagined it would be. You love your kids fiercely, but the reality of constant messes, tantrums, and exhaustion has left you questioning the idealized version of motherhood you once had. Social media doesn’t help, with its curated images of smiling families and perfect moms who make it all look effortless. You can’t help but feel like you’re failing in comparison, even though you know those snapshots don’t tell the full story deep down.
Sometimes, you wonder if you’re cut out for this, even though you wouldn’t trade your kids for the world. You miss the sense of purpose and identity you had before becoming “Mom.” You feel like you’ve lost yourself in the daily grind; sometimes, it’s hard to see a way out. But then your kids do something sweet or hilarious, and for a brief moment, it feels worth it. Those moments keep you going, even when the disillusionment feels overwhelming.
9. You Consider Having To Make Dinner A Cruel Joke
The mere thought of making dinner at the end of a long day feels like the universe playing a prank on you. You’ve spent all day feeding, cleaning, and running around, and now you’re expected to whip up a meal everyone will eat without complaining. Half the time, you’re too tired to care what’s on the menu, as long as it’s edible and quick. The other half, you’re stuck playing short-order cook, catering to picky eaters who won’t even thank you for the effort.
What’s worse, you know the moment you finish cooking, someone will say, “I don’t like this,” or refuse to eat it altogether. The emotional and physical labor of preparing meals every day feels like an endless cycle you’ll never escape. Takeout sounds tempting, but it’s not always an option, and the guilt of not serving a “proper” meal nags at you. Dinner has become less of a bonding time and more of a chore you dread every evening. It’s not just about the food—it’s about the mental toll of doing it all with zero appreciation.
10. You Can’t Keep Up With The Laundry Basket (Or Mental Load)
The laundry basket is like a black hole—it never gets empty no matter how many loads you do. When you think you’ve caught up, another pile magically appears, taunting you. Some socks seem to vanish into thin air and endless shirts covered in mysterious stains you can’t identify. It feels like a never-ending battle against time, with the laundry basket always winning.
Some days, you wonder if it’s worth folding because the clothes will be back in the hamper by the end of the day. You fantasize about throwing it all out and starting fresh with fewer clothes just to make life easier. But of course, you keep trudging along, folding, sorting, and washing like it’s your full-time job. The monotony of it all wears on you, yet it’s one of those things that must be done. You’re convinced the laundry basket is mocking you, but you keep going because, well, someone has to.
11. You’re Too Tired To Go Out, Even Though You Miss Your Friends
You miss your friends desperately, but the idea of getting dressed, leaving the house, and making conversation feels impossible most days. By the time you’ve gotten the kids to bed and finished the day’s chores, all you want to do is collapse on the couch. Socializing feels like another task on your to-do list, and you just don’t have the energy to check it off. You know deep down that seeing your friends would lift your spirits, but the effort seems overwhelming.
Over time, the distance between you and your social life grows, leaving you feeling isolated. You scroll through old photos of nights out and wonder how you ever had the energy to stay up past 10 p.m. It’s not that you don’t want to see your friends—it’s that motherhood has left you so drained that even the thought of it feels exhausting. You miss the connection, the laughter, and the feeling of being seen as something other than “Mom.” But right now, the idea of putting yourself first feels like a luxury you can’t afford.
12. You Go For Days Without Showering
Showers have become a rare luxury rather than a daily ritual. Personal hygiene often takes a backseat between getting the kids ready, running errands, and keeping the house somewhat functional. Some days, you don’t even realize you haven’t showered until you catch a whiff of your own exhaustion. The idea of taking 10 uninterrupted minutes for yourself feels laughable when someone is always needing you.
When you finally do manage to shower, it feels like a mini-vacation—a fleeting moment of peace in an otherwise chaotic day. But those moments are few and far between, and most days, you settle for dry shampoo and a prayer. It’s not that you don’t care about taking care of yourself—it’s that motherhood has made it nearly impossible to prioritize. You wonder how something so simple has become such a challenge, but you push the thought aside because there are more pressing things to do. You tell yourself it’s temporary, even though it feels like another part of yourself you’ve had to sacrifice.
13. You Keep Having Pangs of Anxiety
Anxiety has become an uninvited companion in your daily life. You’re constantly worrying—about your kids, their safety, your finances, the laundry, and a hundred other things that pile up in your mind. Even small, manageable tasks feel overwhelming because your brain is always in overdrive. You might catch yourself imagining worst-case scenarios or replaying every tiny mistake from the day. Sometimes it’s a knot in your stomach, other times it’s a racing heart that shows up out of nowhere, but the feeling is always there, lurking in the background.
The constant cycle of anxiety leaves you feeling mentally drained, even on days that aren’t particularly stressful. You know logically that you’re doing your best, but it’s hard to quiet the voice in your head telling you it’s not enough. Even when you finally have a moment to relax, the anxiety doesn’t stop—it shifts to wondering if you forgot something important. The weight of it all can make you feel like you’re on the edge of losing control. You know you should prioritize self-care or seek support, but finding the time and energy feels impossible.
14. You Feel Like You’re Living Life On Autopilot
Some days, you go through the motions without really feeling like you’re living. You wake up, handle the chaos, check off your endless list of tasks, and then collapse into bed, only to do it all over again tomorrow. There’s no time to stop and savor the small moments because you’re too busy keeping everything running. Your life feels like a never-ending loop of responsibilities, and while you love your family, it’s hard not to feel stuck in the monotony.
Even the joyful moments, like playing with your kids or having a family dinner, can feel overshadowed by exhaustion. You find yourself wondering, “Is this it?” but then feel guilty for even having that thought. The days blur together, and it’s hard to remember the last time you did something just for yourself. You miss feeling passionate or excited about life but don’t know how to break out of the cycle. Living on autopilot keeps you functioning, but deep down, you long for something more fulfilling.
15. You Can’t Believe You Signed Up For This
Some days, you look around at the chaos and wonder how you got here. You love your kids more than anything, but the sheer weight of motherhood feels overwhelming at times. You never expected it to be easy, but no one warned you how relentless it would be. The constant demands, the lack of sleep, and the mental load of keeping a family running make you question if you were ever prepared for this.
It’s not that you regret becoming a mom—it’s that you’re grappling with the gap between what you imagined and what it really is. The sacrifices, the exhaustion, and the feeling of losing yourself can make you long for the simplicity of your pre-kid life. You know you’d do it all again in a heartbeat, but that doesn’t mean you don’t need a break. The guilt for even thinking, “What was I thinking?” can be overwhelming, but you’re not alone in those feelings. Motherhood is messy, exhausting, and beautiful, and sometimes you just need to remind yourself that you’re doing your best—and that’s enough.