How Recovering from Burnout Prepared Me to be a Twin Mom

In April of 2026, I proudly welcomed twin boys into the world.

And in joining their 4-year-old brother into the family, I became a mother of 3.

Not only am I still in awe of these babies, this life and the incredible growth of my family, it dawned on me that the years I spent recognizing, unlearning and deconditioning from toxic productivity and chronic stress served as the powerful foundation that I needed to do this thing called postpartum with multiples. And boy oh boy, (no pun intended) do I have a lot to share. :)

Here’s how my burnout recovery journey prepared me to be a twin mom:

I learned how to ask for and receive help.

A huge part of my burnout recovery journey was healing from hyper-independence. I frequently relied on myself too much to get things done, inside and outside of work. Learning how to not do it all was a practice of building my skills with task delegation, time management and what I consider the toughest of them all, communication.

In recovering from an emergency C-section of twins, my options were limited and it just wasn’t possible to physically do all the things. I had to voice what I needed and aid in teaching my loved ones the routines, systems and structures needed to care of my little ones. This required me to make peace with accepting imperfect help (also known as accepting that things will not always be done exactly the way I would do them, and that’s okay!) and helped me learn to focus on what’s most important.

I learned how to release the perfectionism in my parenting.

I fully embrace that I am an imperfect parent. And in doing so, its made me a better one. Perfectionism literally has no room in our busy, full home. Seriously, we’re full full!

The idea that I must doing something “exactly” right just doesn’t make sense to me anymore. Chores are completed as well as they can be. Tasks are done with the limited capacity I have. I am finding great comfort is the “enoughness” of it all! I’m grateful that this impossible standard of being flaw-free doesn’t compute anymore. Instead, I recognize that I am new to so many parts of this parenthood journey. Error is expected and practice, not perfection, makes progress.

I learned how to prioritize what’s most important.

Nothing, I mean nothing, has helped me more as a twin mom than learning how to prioritize better. Because in this season, my basic needs are of the highest priority.

My favorite example of this? Eating.

No joke — in the past, eating a proper meal was something I would sacrifice first in the throws of burnout. Now, feeding myself and nourishing my body are top tier on the priority list. In the many things that I and my loved ones do to care for the littles, it can be hard to simply pause and eat. So now when the babies are sleeping or occupied with play, I review a gentle reminder list I made for myself to check before washing more bottles or loading another load of laundry:

If you’re hungry, eat.

If you’re thirsty, refill that water.

Rest your eyes.

Get off your feet or get up and stretch.

Caring for yourself is needed now.

I have no shame in admitting that this practice was difficult to engage in at first, but with time, opportunity and in seeing the positive results (like, you know, not feeling famished and dehydrated) I made this habit stick.

I learned that my rest is absolutely, positively non-negotiable.

There’s no doubt about it — my rest IS what’s needed to be the parent I need to be for my family.

The sleep deprivation from twin parenthood is very different from when I was a new mom to one baby. Prioritizing rest is a little bit more challenging when you put one baby down to sleep and the other immediately wakes up. So “sleeping when the baby sleeps” isn’t always possible for me.

When I am able to sleep, put my feet up or offer relief to my hands, back, shoulders, etc. I DO. Every bit of rest helps. Sleep is as precious as gold to me, and I no longer hesitate to rest when I can.

If you would have told me that taking the time to recover from occupational burnout would be the foundation I needed for twin parenthood, I would have looked at you crosseyed! But the truth is that strengthening my ability to care for myself has naturally had a positive impact on my family, my children and our future ahead. My kids are receiving a version of their mom who is so much more compassionate, caring and loving to herself. And that right there, is truly priceless.

To learn more about how to strengthen your burnout recovery journey, dive into my guided journal, The Self Care Investment.