You’ve built the career. You lead the meetings. You mentor your team, juggle deadlines, navigate corporate politics, and keep the household running (even if the laundry is never actually folded). You manage school forms, grocery lists, and family logistics and you still show up to that 7am leadership call with a polished face and a hot take on Q2 forecasts.
You’re the one people depend on. At work. At home. Always.
But somewhere between managing a team and managing bedtime, the cracks are showing. And no one’s really talking about what that actually feels like for high-achieving women carrying the mental and emotional load of everything.
It doesn’t always look like a dramatic breakdown. More often, it looks like a slow unraveling, one skipped meal and missed workout at a time. These five red flags are the ones I see most in the executive-level moms I coach, signs that you’re not thriving… you’re surviving. And barely.
1. You Reread the Same Email 3x and Still Don’t Know What It Says
You’re sharp. You’ve always been sharp. But recently, you find yourself rereading emails, sometimes three or four times, before they make sense. You zone out during calls. You forget what you just said in that 1:1.
That’s not a character flaw. It’s cognitive overload. When your brain is juggling Q3 planning, your child’s dentist appointment, three back-to-back meetings, and whether you remembered to cancel the Instacart order, you lose the capacity to focus. Executive function doesn’t disappear because you’re “slipping.” It’s just overwhelmed by the mental load you’re carrying daily.
2. You Snapped at Your Kid for Asking Where Their Cleats Are and at Your Direct Report for “Not Thinking It Through”
Sound familiar? Your kid asks where their water bottles are (again), and you snap, harder than you meant to. Later that day, a team member misses a detail in a presentation, and you respond with an edge that surprises even you.
It’s not about the water bottles. It’s not about the email. It’s about the fact that you haven’t had a moment to breathe, let alone reset. Your patience is depleted, and because there’s no margin in your day for you, the smallest interruptions feel like threats. When burnout sets in, it leaks out into our tone, our leadership, our parenting.
3. You’re Running on Coffee and Protein Bars and Calling It “Fine”
Breakfast? Coffee.
Lunch? Maybe a protein bar in the car between meetings.
Dinner? A few bites of your kid’s mac & cheese while standing at the kitchen counter answering emails.
You’re underfed and overstimulated and calling it productivity. Your body doesn’t have what it needs to support your brain, your leadership, or your mood. When you’re living on caffeine and autopilot, your energy crashes by 2pm, your decision-making weakens, and your body starts running on stress hormones alone.
This isn’t a willpower issue. It’s a system issue.
4. You’re Checking Emails During Dinner and in Bed
You tell yourself you’re just staying on top of things. Just finishing one last reply. Just making sure you’re not behind tomorrow. But really, there’s no off switch. You’re checking Slack during dinner, thinking about QBR while packing school lunches, and rewriting tomorrow’s talking points in your head while brushing your teeth.
There’s no boundary between work and life, just constant blending. And while this multi-tasking feels efficient, it’s actually draining your ability to be present anywhere. When you’re constantly “on” your nervous system never fully relaxes, your sleep suffers, your mood dips, and your ability to recover disappears.
5. You Fall Into Bed Exhausted But Still Can’t Sleep
Your body is tired but your brain is wide awake. You lie in bed replaying the day’s meetings, listing tomorrow’s to-dos, and wondering if you remembered to send that email or sign that permission slip.
This wired-but-tired state is your nervous system running in overdrive. And when it becomes chronic, it disrupts not only your sleep, but your recovery, focus, and long-term health. You start every day with half a tank, if that.
These Aren’t Just “Busy Mom Problems”. They’re Leadership Red Flags
What’s wild is how normalized this all is. You’ve been told this is just what it means to be successful. That exhaustion is part of the package. That if you can’t manage it all with a smile and caffeine, you’re just not “doing it right.”
But these aren’t just signs of a full life. They’re signals that your systems are broken.
You wouldn’t run your business without clear strategy, operations, or structure. So why are you trying to run your life that way?
You don’t need more hustle. You need systems that protect your energy, streamline your decisions, and make your default mode support you.
What Sustainable High Performance Actually Looks Like:
✅ Movement that fits your schedule
❌ Not a 4:30am bootcamp
✅ Meals that take under 10 minutes
❌ Not 27-step Pinterest recipes
✅ Boundaries that guard your mental load
❌ Not just your meeting calendar
✅ Tools that make healthy the default
❌ Not another to-do
This is what I teach inside The LifeSTYLE Collective, a space for high-performing women to build systems that protect their energy, prioritize their wellness, and support the life they’re working so hard to create.
Because burnout isn’t a badge of honor. It’s a warning sign. And you’ve got too much brilliance to waste it running on fumes.
Let’s stop surviving.
Let’s build a life that supports the woman behind the title.
🔗 Want the Guide? Here’s Your First Step.
If this hit close to home, I created something just for you:
[Click here to download my free guide: Lead Your Time]
It’s the exact framework I use with my executive clients to help them reclaim their time, energy, and confidence without having to overhaul their entire lives.
If you’re tired of white-knuckling your way through your day, this is where we begin.
Let’s build a smarter system.
One that serves you, not just everyone around you.
