From Burnout to Being: How Embracing Femininity Restores the Weary Woman

Suppose you were to scroll through Instagram or TikTok these days. In that case, you may find a pattern– many women find themselves caught in a cycle of burnout—emotionally drained, spiritually disconnected, and physically exhausted. The constant push to do more, be more, and achieve more often overrides our natural rhythms and silences the deep wisdom of our femininity. But what if the antidote to burnout isn’t pushing harder—but softening? What if healing lies not in productivity, but in presence?

As women of faith—especially disciples of Jesus Christ—we are invited into a divine pattern that honors creation, rest, and the sacredness of being. Scripture, modern prophets, and even secular scholarship all point toward the replenishing power of feminine rest, receptivity, and rhythm. God-designed femininity can help women overcome burnout and live in alignment with their divine nature.

The Feminine Burnout Crisis

Women today carry enormous expectations. We are often expected to perform in professional spaces like men, nurture our families like traditional homemakers, manage households, remain attractive, serve in our church communities, and somehow maintain a social life and self-care routine. This chronic multitasking and emotional labor has consequences.

Burnout—originally coined by psychologist Herbert Freudenberger in 1974—is now a widespread phenomenon, and women are particularly susceptible. According to a 2021 study published by McKinsey & Company, women are significantly more likely than men to experience burnout due to the “double shift” of paid work and unpaid caregiving responsibilities.

Femininity: A Divine Design

In The Family: A Proclamation to the World, we are taught that “gender is an essential characteristic of individual premortal, mortal, and eternal identity and purpose.” Femininity is not a social construct—it is sacred, intentional, and designed by God. To reject femininity is to reject a part of our eternal identity.

So what does it mean to step into femininity?

Feminine energy, both spiritually and psychologically, is characterized by receptivity, intuition, connection, nurturing, softness, creation, and rhythm. These are not signs of weakness. They are divine attributes of godly women—including Eve, Mary, and so many others. Embracing femininity doesn’t mean abandoning strength—it means redefining it. Instead of armor, it’s openness. Instead of striving, it’s surrender.

Elder Jeffrey R. Holland taught, “Fatigue is the common enemy of all of us—so slow down, rest up, replenish, and refill.” God does not ask women to run faster than they have strength. Instead, He invites us to come unto Him and find rest (see Matthew 11:28–30). Rest is not laziness. It is a holy pattern.