Dear Eric >> I’m a woman in my late 40s, juggling a multitude of responsibilities that have left me feeling drained and overwhelmed. At work, I manage several teams and am constantly making high-pressure decisions. At home, I’m a dedicated mother to a tweenager; her father (my ex-husband) is rather uninvolved, placing a significant burden on me for our daughter’s needs. My current husband, while supportive, is embroiled in a contentious custody battle, turning to me for emotional grounding. My elderly parents, while healthy, depend on daily check-ins, which can be emotionally taxing. Even our pets seem to rely on me for comfort.

The constant demand for emotional labor has left me with decision fatigue, irritability, headaches and frequent crying spells.

I’m searching for effective strategies to replenish my energy and find moments of peace. I’m grateful for the support of my husband and I am on anti-anxiety medication through a psychiatrist that I like. I also see an executive coach monthly. I have looked for a therapist for years, but I haven’t found one who resonates with me. How can I navigate this complex web of responsibilities and reclaim my own well-being? Is this what a mid-life crisis feels like?

— Emotionally Exhausted

Dear Exhausted >> I write this with the utmost compassion: you are going through it. I’m sorry and I hear you and I’m taking a deep sympathetic breath in hopes that you’re somewhere right now also pausing, breathing in and exhaling.

Even though you’re getting some support, there’s something so crucial in just acknowledging — to yourself, to you psychiatrist, to a friend, to the world — this is too much for right now. It doesn’t make you weak, nor does it make you a failure. Sometimes it can just be a release valve — a way of describing the mountain you’re trying to climb.

I want to strongly suggest a mindfulness and meditation practice. Apps like Calm and books like “Mindfulness” by Dr. Danny Penman and “Meditations for Mortals” by Oliver Burkeman offer digestible entry points for reclaiming even five minutes a day. A practice will do two things — at least. First, it’s a message to yourself that this time is important to you and, by extension, you’re important to you. With your energies being pulled in so many different directions, it can be easy to have little left for yourself. Secondly, a practice will help quiet the mind not only while you’re meditating, but in the hours afterward. This better sets you up to navigate around and through the daily stressors.

Please keep talking to friends and loved ones about what’s going on. It’s not a burden to check in, even if others can’t always help. This is a lot, but it’s not forever.