How Planning Ahead can Reduce the Mental Load for Parents

Today's world has normalised a culture of busyness to the point where parents often find themselves burnt out from the tasks of day-to-day life.

Whether it’s trying to locate one missing sport’s shoe in order to get the kids to school before the bell, in addition to working out when to squeeze in a grocery shop so there is food for dinner that doesn’t involve cutting off the mouldy parts of the bread as well as decorating every surface of your home with Post Its so you don’t forget to pay your vehicle registration and risk paying a fine equal in value to the registration itself…

This is all part of life admin that contributes to the mental load we experience as parents on a daily basis. 

So how can we lessen the load? 

How can we get the stuff that’s rolling around in our minds, out of our heads, and put it somewhere else to refer to ‘not now’? 

How can we organise all the different parts of our lives in one place? 

This is where Eggy can step up and do the heavy lifting.  

The 'mental load'

'Mental load' refers to the sheer amount of mental energy expended in managing a household, much of which falls onto one person, for whatever reason.

While it's not a challenge our ancestors may have faced, or certainly not to this extent, living in the twenty-first century means having to juggle work commitments, caring duties, meal planning, financial burdens, extracurricular activities, errands and social obligations, on a daily basis. 

What happens when the mental load becomes too much?

As mentioned previously, the mental load is a challenge faced by every household.

It is a product of the current world we live in.  But for some families, the weight of the mental load can have serious consequences. 

The results of carrying the majority of the mental load can include feelings of overwhelm, stress, fatigue, guilt and resentment which can lead to tension between partners and/or leave the overburdened parent feeling as though they are drowning with no way out, that this is their lot in life.  

These feelings associated with the mental load can have an impact on not only your emotional health, but also on your physical wellbeing.

When the body experiences chronic stress, it may release increased and sustained levels of cortisol which can have long-term physiological implications, such as fatigue, irritability, headaches, intestinal problems, weight gain, anxiety and/or depression, increased blood pressure, low libido, difficulty recovering from exercise, poor sleep and muscle pain/tension.  This can inadvertently affect the other members of the household. 

Therefore, it is suggested that taking proactive steps to plan and manage the mental load of life admin is crucial for both the physical and mental wellbeing of ALL family members.  

The Solution: Unscrambling The Life Admin Mess

The key to managing the mental load is getting organised, planning and sharing the workload.

Creating a weekly task list, setting up shared calendars and making sure everyone is aware of their responsibilities are great ways to get started.

Most households achieve this by setting aside some dedicated time each week or by doing it on the ‘fly’.

It really comes down to whatever works best for yourself and your family. 

By breaking down tasks into manageable and ability-appropriate undertakings, families can stay on top of their individually allocated responsibilities and can share the mental load. 

This means that the parent who has been carrying the majority of the workload can unburden themself from doing the lion’s share of the duties, and therefore, reduce the amount of friction they experience in relation to these tasks. 

In addition, effective time management and organisation can also have a positive effect on children's development. When children - and teenagers, in particular - are given the opportunity to fulfil their individualised responsibilities, they experience the benefits of good habits first hand.

This can have a positive impact on their overall sense of independence which is invaluable as they transition into adulthood.

While we are running from one thing to the next, we are lucky that technology is running alongside us, if not in front of us. 

Eggy has been developed with the sole purpose of reducing the mental load. 

It is a digital filing cabinet, a calendar, a list maker… 

It is your life admin dumping ground. 

It is your technological delegation tool. 

It empowers you to take care of you and your family. 

And the best bit, especially in these current times where the cost of almost everything has increased exponentially, is that Eggy is free to download. 

Is the thought of getting started with a new app too overwhelming? 

Take a look at this Starter Pack on offer from the developers of Eggy. 

You will have the Pro version of Eggy added to your account. 

You will get the opportunity to have a one hour face-to-face conversation with real human beings (no bots here) about your needs, how best to make Eggy work for you, any questions you may have and scheduled ongoing support. 

You also receive an ‘Eggy Angel Space’ to dump all of the life admin items you would like the team at Eggy to sort and upload for you.        

Family life is demanding. 

Let Eggy take the reins and steer you towards a less stressful way of living today.