How Can You Balance Parenting and Work Stress?

In an ideal world, adults don’t have to choose between pursuing career growth and looking after their children. Unfortunately, in reality, most working parents struggle with juggling these two important responsibilities.

While employment among working women without kids remains steady, Californian mothers with school-aged children are lagging behind in their professional careers by more than 6%. Work can already be a big source of stress on its own, but working parents also have to balance their own careers with their parenting responsibilities. As a result, some parents end up sacrificing their work, while some compromise on the love and care that their children need.

This is a common dilemma for many parents, but there are a few strategies that can help with balancing the scale. Here are some tips for handling parenting and work at the same time:

Manage your mental health

Although you love your kids and your career, the stress from both can get to you. Unfortunately, this cycle of stress can sometimes get ugly.

Though it may seem ironic to put yourself first, a study on parenting conducted in California revealed that mental health can affect how parents treat their children. Poor mental health can have an impact on a parent’s ability to cope with certain situations, which is why some stressed parents end up becoming aggressive or even neglecting their children. We’ve all heard it before: Put your own oxygen on first! If you’re handling a stressful workload, you have to figure out how to work in the self-care strategies,   whether that is exercise, meditation, or even therapy. By supporting your mental and emotional needs, you'll be more equipped to care for your own children and perform at work.

Pursue flexible options for your career

Work can take a toll on professionals in high-stress environments, especially parents working in healthcare or similar industries. In this case, one of the kindest things that you can do for your mental health and for your family is to pursue flexible working opportunities.

Let’s take the healthcare industry as an example. Thanks to advancements in telemedicine, there’s a wider variety of remote opportunities for physicians in California, which allows more physicians who have families to deliver quality care to patients on a more manageable schedule. Opting for these remote opportunities allows you to provide primary and even urgent care to patients, while opening up enough time and space for you to look after your kids. Likewise, working parents in other fields can also try to ask or apply for flexible work opportunities for a better work-life balance.

Learn how to delegate tasks properly

It’s all well and good taking on responsibilities in your role as a parent, but if you want to avoid burnout, you’ll have to learn how to delegate tasks to your family.

Task delegation can teach kids crucial life skills, which is why our article on ‘What Parents Can Learn From Classroom Teachers’ recommends that you create routines where your kids can accomplish tasks while having fun. To illustrate, you can play fun and uplifting music while cleaning up, or even hide cute surprises for them to discover as they organize their things. This way, you can free up your time while working on improving your child’s life skills.

Find ways to communicate your struggles

Task delegation can also go a long way in reducing your work-related stress. But since this is in a work setting, you’ll have to communicate your pain points professionally.

This is especially critical in fields like accountancy, where busy periods can get overwhelming. Lindsay Stevenson of 1st Financial Bank USA revealed that accountants who have a family feel the need to be 100% available for all the roles in their lives. When things get too difficult at work, parents should try approaching their managers or HR departments to discuss deadlines, deliverables, and more. This allows working parents to maintain their accountability, while finding solutions for their struggles.


You don’t need to be a superhero at home and at work to fulfill all of your roles. By making the right adjustments, it is possible to thrive at work and have more time for your family.