Understanding The Mental Load of Motherhood

Jan 20, 2026 | Mom Support

Understanding The Mental Load of Motherhood

We’ve all been there.

You finally crawl into bed. The house is quiet. The kids are asleep (after a few glasses of water, a bathroom trip, an extra story, and some convincing.) Your body is exhausted, but your mind is racing at 80 in a 25 mph zone.

Replaying the day, remembering what you forgot, thinking about tomorrow’s appointments, calls to reschedule, lunches to pack, forms to sign, and the conversation you meant to have with your partner. Your eyes are ready to doze, but your brain is just getting started.

That double shift your mind is clocking into is the mental load of motherhood.

What Is the Mental Load of Motherhood?

The mental load of motherhood is more than the physical work of parenting.
It extends to the invisible work that lives in your head, all of the to-dos and can’t-forgets you fear will slip through the cracks.

Maybe it’s household chores or maintenance, appliances that need repair, classroom parent responsibilities, homework help, questions for the math teacher about extra support, activity registration, sports gear that needs cleaning, swapping out clothes for the season, pantry items that need to be restocked, concerns about screen time, birthday gifts to wrap, feeling guilty about a kid’s vegetable aversion, helping your child overcome their fear of a two-wheeler… seriously, it’s everything. And as it piles up, it can start to disrupt your sleep and wellbeing as you face some serious mom burnout.

How Mental Overload Shows Up in Motherhood

Mental overload often shows up quietly in the background as we shuffle through our day-to-day. It builds as we scramble out the door, thinking about everything we’ll come back to at the end of a shift or school drop-off. For many of us, it brings with it feelings of irritability, forgetfulness, and emotional exhaustion.

Ways to Reduce the Mental Load of Motherhood

Most moms are told they need better time management or more discipline and motivation. But do you know what has * actually * helped me as a mom of 3 when I’m stuck in a rut of mental overwhelm?

Support.

After my second son was born, I scoured the internet and app store for tools specifically made to help moms. When I didn’t find the support I was looking for, I built it for myself: Mama Mode was born. These are some of the foundational ideas behind the app:

1. Get the Mental Load Out of Your Head

Your brain was never meant to hold everything. Getting tasks, routines, reminders, and plans out of your head and into a system that works for you can be an effective way to reduce overwhelm.

2. Build a Support System

Support means different things at different stages of motherhood. For some, it may look like:

A partner who truly shares the mental labor
Friends who understand
A community of moms who get it
Tools that support you daily

Seeking out and asking for support is not a sign of weakness. Mamahood wasn’t meant to be managed alone.

3. Create Gentle Routines

No rigid schedules here. Gentle routines reduce decision fatigue and help your nervous system by establishing predictable habits. These habits can help you feel grounded instead of overwhelmed.

You Were Never Meant to Carry This Alone

If you’re an exhausted mom feeling out of bandwidth, you’re not a failure. The demands of motherhood call for support that feels gentle, genuine, and just right for this stage of life.

Mama Mode was born out of my own need for support postpartum and beyond. I created the app I so wish had existed when I was looking for a way to manage the mental load. With Mama Mode, users can lighten the mental load in a way that works for them so that they can show up for themselves and the people they love.

Ready to Lighten Your Mental Load?

Start with our free 7-Day Mama Mode Reset. Our gentle reset was designed to help you catch your breath and find some peace as you unpack the things taking up space in your mind.

New users can also try the Mama Mode app ✨ FREE ✨for 7 days to feel what it’s like to lighten your mental load in the way that works best for you.

We’re in this together, mama.

MAMA MODE | JAN 20, 2026 | MAMA SUPPORT

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My Fave DIY Halloween Costume for Toddlers: Slinky Dog!

Oct 14, 2025 | DIY Project

My Fave DIY Halloween Costume for Toddlers: Slinky Dog!

3 years and 1 baby ago 😉 I was finally emerging from the postpartum fog with my second born. As Fall rolled in, I had the itch to start a new project (which, to be fair, happens a few times a month) and decided to tackle homemade family costumes for Halloween. I was crafty. I was creative. How hard could it be??!

While the process humbled me quickly, I’m so glad I made the effort because I mean come on, how cute was the final product?! Granted, it felt like an emotional roller coaster within a few hours trying to get these costumes holiday-ready, but I was still so proud of myself and these pictures bring back some really sweet memories. If you want to try your hand at our DIY Toy Story costume, scroll down for some details and inspiration to get you started.

As a 2 under 2 mom at the time (and now a 3 under 4 mom LOL) keeping my kids close together while trick-or-treating or at our local Halloween parade was paramount. With 2, we could still manage man-to-man coverage, but I loved that their slinky dog costume kept them physically together.

As with most creative endeavors, there’s room for some artistic license here, so adapt to your kids’ preferences as you see fit. Always check and monitor for potential safety issues. And if you buy your costumes or recycle them from last year? You go, mama. Love that for us.

These basics brought Slinky Dog to life:

1 Jumbo Slinky and 1 small Slinky (any color- we’re gonna spray paint them anyway)
Brown sweaters for kids (Halloween was cold that year so I went with a thick knit sweater, which also allowed me to feed the slinky through the sweater easily without having to cut it.)
Puppy dog headband (I deconstructed this for other parts of the costume, so check notes for how you could skip this item if you wanted)
Brown hats (we had these already, and my boys preferred them over wearing a puppy dog headband)
Green dog collar
Brown sweatpants or leggings
Weldbond
Craft Glue
Velcro roll with adhesive on one side
*Knowing what I know now – I would add cardboard for a cardboard structure underneath the sweater*

Before you get started, watch the reel of my process from start to finish. It’s about a minute and will ensure the steps below actually make sense! And one major hiccup I ran into was a sagging Slinky, so I ended up using some string and tape to hold the Slinky up. In hindsight, a cardboard structure underneath the sweater probably would have helped a lot.

Done watching? Read on!

Spray paint your slinkies silver. I did this outside on top of some deconstructed cardboard boxes from our recycling bin.
Cut off the ears from the headband and sew to the hat (or if your kid likes the headband, skip this step and just use the headband!)
Use the headband as the structure for the tail and sew to pants. (See notes for alternative if actually wearing the headband.)
Attach small Slinky to tail with Weldbond at top and bottom of tail and clamp to dry (I used a giant paper clip.)
Once dry, turn the first sweater inside out. Gently feed the first ring of the jumbo slinky through the knit of the belly of the sweater. The rest of the slinky should sit inside the sweater. Secure with Velcro. I added Weldbond for extra security on the adhesive side of the Velcro that held it to the slinky.
Gently turn sweater right side out. The majority of the slinky should look like it’s sitting on the belly of this sweater now!
Line up the second sweater right side out making sure the belly is facing the slinky (should look like a sweater-slinky-sweater sandwich.)
Working from the inside of sweater #2, feed the other end of the slinky through the knit. Once one coil is inside the sweater, attach velcro (using Weldbond for extra security if you want.)
Time for a costume fitting!

Notes:

-If the “head” of your slinky dog costume wants to wear the headband, you could buy a second one to use as the tail, or sew a small tail with brown fabric scrap (old t shirt, anyone?) and some stuffing (cotton balls might work in a pinch.) Pipe cleaners could be twisted into a tail and covered with fabric, as well.

What are your favorite ways to create Halloween magic? Share your completed DIY costumes (or attempts 😂) with us on IG @mamamode.app 🫶

MAMA MODE | OCT 13, 2025 | DIY PROJECT