1 in 3 Parents Expect a Summer Filled With Anxiety — & as a Mom of 3, I Can Relate

Sunscreen, swimsuits, and sertraline — what else do you need for a perfect summer? Around February, my mental health takes a huge dip as I stressfully anticipate the weeks between the end of May and middle of August. Yes, my anxiety spikes 3 months early because February is the month when kids’ summer camps begin to fill up. And despite how expensive they are, those days I can drop my three kids off for a few hours provide much-needed childcare for me.

Moms are already expected to do it all, but that’s never more obvious than the 3 months of summer break. Entertain your kids for 12 hours a day, build long-lasting summer memories, take them to swimming lessons and playdates, go see 11 a.m. movies, and, oh yeah — keep up your normal workload through it all. “There’s only 18 summers with your kids, Mama!” Instagram influencers preach at me, while I stare emptily into a void and wear out my voice screaming into pillows. No one can hear me anyway with the chaos my house has plummeted into with boys ages 7, 6, and 3, plus a golden retriever at home. What’s that? I look tired, you say? No, that’s just a chronic eye twitch from trying to find a moment of peace in the late hours after my kids finally collapse into bed, often still smelling of chlorine. Pools are basically baths this time of year, am I right?

Call me a Type C mom, but in reality, one-third of parents feel this exact same way about summertime. A new study found that 1 in 3 parents expect a summer filled with non-stop anxiety, and I am definitely one of them.

No Rest for the Wicked (aka, Moms)

A new study of 2,000 US millennial parents (ages 29-50) of school-aged children, found that one in three believe that they won’t have one single day without experiencing anxiety this summer. Let that sink in. No break from anxiety the entire summer — no wonder I’m feeling so burned out!

The end of the school year makes 29 percent of parents feel “exhausted,” 28 percent feel “anxious,” and 21 percent feel “overwhelmed,” according to the poll, which was commissioned by Bob Evans and conducted by Talker Research, per New York Post. And a whopping 49 percent stated the reason for this is trying to find a way to balance work with their child’s summer schedule.

While I love working from home as a freelance writer, I hate the perception that just because I’m home I can take care of kids, too. I can barely open the computer without someone needing milk or having to go potty or wanting me to read them a book or talking my ear off about their latest accomplishments in Minecraft. I love motherhood, but no mom should be expected to work a full-time professional job and a more-than-full time job of raising her kids without help.

Some of the reasons parents are stressed include anxiety about having their kids around the house 24/7 (34 percent) and not having enough time for themselves (33 percent). I can’t help but wonder if the remaining two-thirds of parents surveyed have grandparents to help or the money to hire full-time nannies or summer camp over the break. For everyone else who isn’t lucky enough for that, this time of year is a struggle. Not least of all because we work hard to make sure our kids don’t think we are struggling because of them. Of course I love hanging out with you, sweetie. It’s just impossible to fit in 8 hours of quiet time to work before you wake up in the morning and after you go to bed at night.

Summer Plans Aren’t Helping

Having a feral summer sounds fun, but my kids aren’t old enough to wander our neighborhood alone or do much without my constant supervision. They are off their schedules and routines, constantly hungry, and always finding something new to fight about with each other.

My husband works in-office the majority of the time, so I signed up my kids for a few weeks of summer camp to help me get my work done. That doesn’t totally ease my anxiety, though. After all, it just makes me busier as I have to chauffeur my kids around. In the study, 86 percent of parents believe the 2025 summer will be busier than last year, due to plans to attend more events for their kids (49 percent), managing their kids’ schedules even more (44 percent), and planning more summer camps and activities (44 percent).

Dr. Lisa Pion-Berlin, a mom herself and CEO of Parents Anonymous, tells SheKnows, “Summer breaks down the carefully established routines which many families need for stability. Because schools are closed, parents face significant stress from having to juggle being entertainers, teachers and caregivers all at once to fill their children’s time.”

And it doesn’t matter the age of your kids. Younger ones “are much more hands-on,” according to Dr. Pion-Berlin and require parents to be “constantly supervising and engaging.” On the other hand, parents of teens “are faced with staying in tune with their teens peer interactions, potential isolation dangers, or risky behaviors.”

And since parents report only spending 8 percent of their typical weeks taking time for themselves, per the Talker Research study, it’s no surprise that we feel so anxious this time of year!

What’s a Mom To Do?

We’re stressed — but what do we do about it? Dr. Pion-Berlin offered some helpful tips. “First, remember you’re not alone,” she tells SheKnows. “And even better? Kids don’t need extravagant activities to thrive this summer.”

She recommends carving out time for “simple shared experiences,” such as reading together, taking nature walks, or having backyard picnics, which “can become deeply valuable moments.” My kids will talk about the blanket fort I built for them in the living room for months afterward, never knowing it was just my creative way to distract them while I caught up on emails.

I’ve also taken my kids to the playground, library, or McDonald’s play place, with my computer in tow. That way, I can keep an eye on them while they have some safe fun (without worrying about the house getting destroyed in the meantime!).

No matter how you survive the summer, Dr. Pion-Berlin wants moms to “give yourself some grace.” She says, “Children acquire essential life skills by watching you manage stress effectively through realistic boundary setting and self-care practices. By observing adults practicing coping strategies children develop resilience together with self-compassion.” 

Resources to Help

Looking for extra support? Dr. Pion-Berlin shared some helpful suggestions available to stressed parents.

“Reach out for support before you hit your limit,” she says. “No-cost and judgment-free options like the National Parent & Youth Helpline are incredibly valuable resource for parents and their children.” She called this helpline “a space where you can share your emotions and work through your issues with a trained professional that ‘gets’ where you are coming from.”

And, if you can, try to find other parents to connect (or commiserate) with. I like to get together with my sister’s or friend’s kids and let the kids run wild while we score some downtime.

“Parental isolation can be reduced when parents join online support groups and get involved with in-person parent hangouts,” Dr. Pion-Berlin explains. “Having that network of parents that know what you’re going through or that you can even lean on for playdates and time to yourself is also crucial.”  

“As moms and dads, we are trained to focus on our children and their mental health,” says Dr. Pion-Berlin. “But if you don’t prioritize your own mental health, it impacts the health of the entire family.” She continues, “Make self-care a regular practice, don’t wait until you feel like you have been put through the ringer, and reach out to those around you when you need support. This also shows your kids how to handle emotions effectively and build resilience in their own lives!” 

Your kids may not truly know what you went through during these endless summer days until they become a parent themselves. But take heart in knowing your kids will learn valuable coping skills, build fun memories (even out of boredom!), and have fun spending time out of school this summer, whether their mom constantly entertains them or saves all the hard stuff — like going to the community pool — for the weekends. We’re doing great, moms, even if it doesn’t always feel like it.

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