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Home › Articles › Issues for Mom › Beating Breastfeeding Burnout

Beating Breastfeeding Burnout

A Stay-at-Home Mother's Guide to Nursing

By Lisa A. Goldstein

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If you're a stay-at-home, breastfeeding mom, you might be feeling completely overwhelmed. Your baby needs you and so does everyone else. Time to yourself seems to be a rare entity. You feel like you are on your own. So what can you do about it?

Some stay-at-home moms feel isolated and "burned out," especially in the early weeks if the mom has a lack of support and sleep deprivation, says Betsy Corcory, IBCLC, a registered nurse with Virtua Health. Plus, all new moms face the possibility that the "burn out" could be depression.

Begin "Operation Mom"
First things first, share your concerns with your medical provider. Postpartum depression can last much longer than you think. Fortunately, it is treatable – even in breastfeeding moms. A number of medications have been shown to be compatible with breastfeeding and have greatly benefited the mother, says Wendy Haldeman, a certified lactation consultant.

Once depression is ruled out, it's time "Operation Mom" can begin.

"It's so important for the stay-at-home mom to remember why she is at home with her baby and to do her best to be in the moment and not look around at the chaos that was once her organized living room or pre-baby nursery, which is now strewn with laundry, toys and an overfull garbage bin," says Leslie Godwin, a psychotherapist who authored From Burned Out to Fired Up: A Woman's Guide to Rekindling the Passion and Meaning in Work and Life (Health Communications, 2004).

Let Go of the Reins
Sometimes aggravation can be increased if your husband isn't doing his share. Let him know how much it will cost to hire some help, Godwin says. This way he can decide if he'd rather help or pay up for someone else to do it. "Don't get emotional about this, but treat it like the practical issue it should be," she says.


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