To think this is a normal amount of tired?

[PleaseLetMummySleep]

Hi!

I am early 30s with one child (18 month old). I work part time (4 days, 8.30-4.30). Hubs works full time. We are up at about 6am on weekdays and 6.30-7am on weekends. Our son no longer wakes to feed but probably does wake us up every 2nd night just needing a pat or a cuddle or his dummy.

I often feel exhausted in the evenings, sometimes I struggle to motivate myself to cook a proper meal on weekday evenings and just want to throw something in the oven for our dinner (we eat after the baby is in bed, and usually I prepare our dinner while hubs does bedtime). Quite often after dinner I just want to sit on the sofa and do nothing except watch TV. I have an occasional night out but by midnight I'm falling asleep 😴 so end up home before my (childfree) friends.

Before kids, I'd be out doing activities or hobbies or socialising a couple of weeknights, and chilling the other weekday evenings.

Can I check, is what I describe normal? AIBU to think it's understandable to be this tired? Or would you be concerned by feeling exhausted at 7pm most weeknights?

Normal.

By the way tho I was in no way exercising except for walking before my son was 3.5!!

I was 37 when I had my twins. They were also born at 28 weeks, so trips back and forth to NICU. My ex OH worked from home but might as well not have been there, as he did so little. The first few years went by in such a daze I may as well have been a zombie.

The little darlings are now 10 and I'm still permanently exhausted with absolutely no idea what a social life is any more.

So yes, perfectly normal.

I was exactly the same for a very long time. You're doing fine, things will improve.

It gets better when they start school.

It’s completely normal and gets better as the get older.

Your colleague sounds a bit insensitive to constantly ask what your evening plans are. It's normal to just plan to eat and do bedtime with DC!

Sounds normal.

You could try to get more sleep on weekends by having "quiet mornings". One of you gets up with the baby and takes him for a walk or arranges quiet play as far from your bedroom as possible and the other sleeps in, then swap next day so both of you get one sleep in per week.

yep! Walking zombie here! I work full time 8:30 - 5pm. My nearly 2yo DS has decided to start refusing his bedtime (because he wants to stay up and be with us) and waking up through the night just to check we're still around ! last night he went to bed (finally) at 8:30 and I was in bed by 9:30. Was up at 12, 2, 4 to see to DS and then we all started our day as usual at 6am. Luckily I function reasonably well on little sleep but today is a special kind of tired!

It does get easier, but it’s still relentless. I’m up at 6.30 am, but they’re 14 & 11 and it’s an endless trawl of homework, school clubs, activities. Then when home in the week it’s not too bad & both in bed by 9.30 pm but weekends - well the 14 year old isn’t tired & to watch a film with us. As I said different, rewarding but relentless.

There’s a difference between tired and knackered and you sound knackered. I work evenings 5 nights, have two dc 4 and 18 months and grew quite accustomed to feeling knackered but as it turns out, I’ve been diagnosed recently with Coeliac Disease. Not saying there might be anything more to it, but a check ups not a bad idea. You got nothing to lose

Hubby and I are permanently completely exhausted. Both work full time, kids are nearly 4 and nearly 7. We do have a cleaner so that helps. But the exhaustion is genuine and seemingly endless! We never go out and rarely exercise...should probably go to bed earlier though! Damn you Netflix!!

Thanks. I hope it gets easier. It's been a tough month as hubs has been away about 10 nights with work in the last 30 days, so I think I'm just feeling it more than usual this month.

Sounds normal to me and I don't have any children!

DD is 6 and I'm still knackered! I'm up at 5am to try to get the housework done before school and then head off to work, then there's the after school activity (she has 1 each day and 5 over the weekend ) - she super active... I swear when I had her she was blessed with all that energy that once belonged to me I tend to spend time in the gym, go to a yoga class, sit in the jacuzzi or get a hot shower whilst she's in her classes (her classes are at my club), which is relaxing and a good way to recharge. I'm usually in bed by 9:30 and read or watch a film for an hour or so.