Original Publish Date: June 24, 2011
I seriously thought this was quiz that was created with ME in mind. See what you think and what it all means here:
DO YOU HAVE PARENTAL BURNOUT?
Here’s a help-wanted ad you won’t see in your local paper: Seeking woman with energy, willing to work twenty-four hours a day. Must be patient, loving, wise, dependable, and organized. Must be able to cook, sew, shop, clean, and quickly learn new methods necessary for keeping a household happy and cared for. Salary: none.
There’d be no takers for a job like that, right? Wrong! Today there are 60 million mothers who tackle such tasks seven days a week. Furthermore, every year 3 million more apply for the position.
If you’re a mother, you understand the rigors of this job like no one else. And surely you’re aware of its rich rewards. But sometimes you might feel that your labor output exceeds your job benefits. Do you ever feel that you are being taken for granted?
The following quiz was designed to gauge the stress level that mothers are feeling on the job. If you’re a mother, take the quiz to see how close to burnout you really are. If you’re not a mom, put yourself in your mother’s shoes and answer the questions as you think she would answer them.
- Lately, do you feel more fatigued than usual? Often Sometimes Rarely
- Do you have difficulty laughing at jokes your family makes about you? Often Sometimes Rarely
- Are you bothered by physical complaints, such as aches, cramps, pains, and headaches? Often Sometimes Rarely
- Do you feel irritable and quick-tempered? Often Sometimes Rarely
- Are you forgetful about dates and appointments, or do you lose or misplace personal belongings? Often Sometimes Rarely
- Are you seeing less of your close friends and loved ones? Often Sometimes Rarely
- Do you experience sleeplessness? Often Sometimes Rarely
- Do you ever feel inattentive to the needs of others? Often Sometimes Rarely
- Are you easily distractible and unable to concentrate? Often Sometimes Rarely
- Are you careless about the appearance of your home? Often Sometimes Rarely
- Do you own your home? Yes No
Explanation As time passes, most mothers assume an all-giving role with their families. This behavior has been studied by psychologists Dorothy Juneward and Dru Scott at the Transactional Analysis Management Institute of San Francisco. They found that some time after the first child arrives, many mothers adopt this pattern.
Explanation: Here are some of the warning signs: A mom feels she must, at all times, and in all places, be a supermother. She devotes most of her time and energy to her husband and children and little to herself. She has a problem accepting her deserved pleasures. She feels guilty when she relaxes, has fun with misgiving, and buys personal things only after much shopping around.
Explanation: And as if such self-denial isn’t enough, this type usually develops into the family scavenger, finishing the wilted lettuce, munching bread ends, and selecting wings when the family dinner is roast chicken. If this sounds all too familiar, the mother in your family may be in a rut. She’s grown accustomed to her place.
Explanation: We’ve heard much recently about burnout striking down even the most hardy of our business executives, but nary a word about mothers. If burnout really does exist in the work world, then those unsung heroines of the kitchen and the car pool deserve a screening, too.
Explanation: Dr. Herbert Freudenberger, in his book Burnout, explains that this creeping malaise can attack families in much the same way that it affects business executives. So take the time to evaluate the mother in your family. Does she have enough job satisfaction? Does she need more vacation time? Are the benefits worth enough? And most of all, monitor her behavior for signs of burnout. If you see them, perhaps it’s time to give her an end-of-year bonus (love, hugs, praise) a bit earlier-and more often.
This is from a now-defunct webpage: chatterbean.com/parenting-quizzes/parental-burnout/