Burnin' Up, Burnin' Out

Without exception, every provider I have personally known has gone through periods of burn out. For some providers it happens more frequently, for others less. These are those days or weeks when you just can not bare the thought of getting out of bed and facing the whining, the crying and even the smiles. You're just done. You silently curse anyone who arrives a mere one minute early and you count down the seconds until the last child is gone.

By now I am sure that there are some non-providers reading this and gasping. They are forming opinions that include such phrases as, "Well, then they shouldn't be caring for children", or, "My goodness, these ladies (or perhaps just me in particular!) are certainly bitchy and complain a lot. Perhaps they should find a different line of work".

I'll be the first to put up my hand and admit that I have had many of these times in my daycare career. I'm not a saint and I have never professed to being one. I'm just human. And to be human means that even I have limitations. I have yet to meet anyone who can say, with one-hundred percent honesty, that they never, ever get burned out in their job. Nope, never happens. Hmmmm........maybe I'm just cynical. Regardless, we'll carry on but I warn those that are holier-than-art-thou that you are likely to become offended on this blog!

As caregivers we are usually the last to recognize and then admit that we are burned out. First, we rarely have time to sit down for a coffee let alone do extensive daily soul searching. This means that our needs and boundary breaches are often missed. Second, even if we have recognized that we are burned out there is that little voice inside our heads that tells us to shut up and clam up. We hadn't dare tell anyone. "They" would never understand. We're not allowed to say that we can not stand, for one more minute, to play blocks with the constant regurgitating two year old presently in our playroom. Or that if another kid poops today we are going to throw a hissy fit that could give the three year old daycare girl a run for her money. But, if you are feeling this way then Honey, as your friend and colleague I am here to utter these words to you......You're burned out.

So, what do you do now?

There are many options at this point. If you can afford to, and really want to, you could quit. However, for most providers this isn't really a viable option. So, then we go to plan B which, for the burned out newbie, is also the most popular approach to licking your wounds while recuperating. It also saves all your daycare families from seeking out a new provider, keeps you in a job, and makes everyone happy by the time the burn out phase has passed. Plan B is simple; do as little as humanly possible while still maintaining order, keeping everyone safe, fed and comfortable.

For those who are non-providers this is the time for you to look away unless you have an hour to leave your raging comment when you are done reading. Okay, we're waiting for you to leave.....

...waiting......

...still waiting.....

Okay, they're gone now. If they're not I'm sure we'll all know their true feels five minutes after they read the following:

Implementing Plan B

Plan B should only be used when your soul is so far into the depths of daycare despair that you shudder every time you hear the "clean, up, clean, up, everybody, everywhere, clean up, clean up....." song. Even when the kids are being angelic your nerves are agitated and your head feels like someone is using steel wool to clean the inside of your skull. So, here we go.

The Television - Who said TV was bad for kids? In fact, as long as the programming is age appropriate there is no harm done to a child while watching an hour of TV for a few days while you recover from your burn out state. If you want to read more about TV and how it actually was studied to be quite enjoyable and beneficial to kids go and borrow The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell from your local library.

Play-Doh - Oh man, I LOVE Hasbro. Not only do they have a role in keeping kids busy for hours with their clay-like wonder dough they also came up with Bob The Builder. See - The Television - above!

Free-Play - Hey, if teachers can send home that cutsie little poem about there being nothing in the child's backpack that day and they get paid by the government then damn it, we can use that line too. Kids like to play. Hell, I'm an adult and I would rather play than work.

Pizza and Nuggets - The makers of these fine dining pre-boxed cuisines must have known a daycare provider or two. No thought process involved. Just turn on oven and insert.

Get a Laptop - There is nothing better for your daycare burn out then to "network" with other providers and vent your frustrations. Oh, and "network" is the official word. Using the term "going on-line" sounds much more like you are stealing time. And with a laptop the kids can do all of the above while you sit in the same room "networking".

Extended Nap-Time - If you had an extra fifteen minutes five days in a row during burn out week that is more than an extra hour of time you get to defrag.

Book It Off - No, you won't be popular but it will be necessary. Daycare parents take personal days all the time. So should you. If you are in burn out, shoot off an email and book off an upcoming Friday and enjoy an extra long weekend. And if you really want to be nasty ask the daycare parents if you can drop off your kid with them for the day.

If all of the above measures fail then there is always Plan C. But, I don't like blog competition so I won't give you the step-by-step for that!




For concerns, advice or suggestions I welcome your email at judytrickett@yahoo.ca