If you encounter signs of burnout in yourself it means that you, as caretaker, require some care. You need to pay attention to your own needs — if you are going to sustain your pivotal role in your child's long-term recovery from OCD. The signs of parent burnout are similar to those of anyone under a great deal of stress. But there are also causes specific to your current situation as the parent of a child with OCD. For example, you may find yourself being short-tempered with all your children for no obvious reason, when the cause of your anger is that you've gone on for too long (perhaps four to five days) helping your child carry out her exposure exercises at home — without taking a meaningful break for yourself.

It's also easy for a burnt-out parent to become harshly critical of a child if she's resistant to an exposure exercise; after all, haven't you just spent every waking moment for nearly a week supporting, monitoring, and documenting her? You may also be particularly sensitive to surprises. Another difficult situation is when your child's OCD-related meltdown seems to come out of nowhere just as you're about to leave the house in the morning. The second most harmful myth after the myth of the perfect parent is the one that says you should have everything under control.

Signs of parental burnout are physical, emotional, and mental: among them, you often feel tired, emotionally wrought and on edge, and find it difficult to concentrate. The issue is always one of degree. If you feel yourself getting too worn down by the demands of parenting a child with OCD it's important to act preventively. Try to head off burnout by taking time for yourself and finding ways to care for your own basic needs for rest, support, balanced nutrition, and exercise.