No Energy After Having Baby

Kids are a lot of work for their entire lives, at least until they move away (and even then they can still be a lot of work depending on the child). Don’t expect for that work to become easier overnight, and plan to work hard and have plenty of tough times while raising your kids - it’s part of parenting that can’t be taken away.

After having kids, you’re not going to feel like doing much for the first several weeks. You’re going to want to sleep and simply relax as much as possible as you’ll be completely sleep deprived. This is completely normal, and you absolutely need to make sure you’re getting enough sleep. At some point though, this period of sleep deprivation will disappear enough that you can start getting back to a more regular schedule.

It’s really all too easy to simply fall into the trap of continuing to feel like you have no energy and not do anything as this period comes to an end. All too often, parents see that having kids is the end of their previous life and they are now completely different with no time at all for themselves. Parents may want to do the things that they previously had plenty of time to do, but they’re unsure how to do so and lack the energy.

This is where parents often lose sight of their goals as adults. It’s so easy to become disheartened with how little energy that you have, and so much easier to just relax in any free time that you do have. At some point, parents may begin to realize that they need to get out of this funk. Ideally, you’re able to recognize this sooner rather than later, and you can get out of the no energy and motivation phase quickly.

Yes, it’s normal to have little energy after having a baby. Yes, it’s normal to not want to do anything, or at the very least not be motivated to do the other things that you want. However, the sooner you’re able to get over that motivation slump the better. Rather than losing multiple years of your life to not doing much beyond being a parent, getting that down to months can make a huge difference in your life.

For many parents, finding motivation to do things that they love comes from their new baby. They want to be the best version of themselves for their new child, and that means that they need to get back up and start working hard again. A child can also be motivation to help change unhealthy habits that you may have so that you’ll be there for that child as they grow older. If your child motivates you to find your energy again, then absolutely rely on that.

For others, motivation may come from wanting to do the things that they love again. Just because you’re a parent doesn’t mean you can’t do things that you want to do. If you want to have time for yourself and for your hobbies, then you’re going to have to work to make that happen. You no longer have a completely free life to do things whenever you want, so you’ll need to work towards making that free time happen. Your motivation comes from wanting to spend time on yourself, and thus you work to get there.

There are many other reasons that may motivate you as a person. Ultimately, you must find and use that motivation to get your energy back. While you may not have the same amount of energy you had before kids, you may be surprised how resilient you are if you put in the effort. It’s a lot of work, but it’s absolutely worth it.

Spend time on yourself, and work to find your energy. Having a child will take a lot out of you, but you can do anything that you put your mind to with or without kids.