Supporting family should never mean sacrificing your well-being. You can love your niece without being treated like on-call childcare. When helping stops feeling warm and starts feeling draining, resentment grows quickly. Real support respects your limits, not just your availability.

Setting a clear “pre-arranged only” rule can change everything. Let your family know you only babysit when asked ahead of time. Structure prevents last-minute pressure and keeps emotions from boiling over. With planning, you can actually show up with joy instead of exhaustion.

And supporting them doesn’t always mean physically being there. You can offer sitter suggestions, split responsibilities, or plan fun days when you actually have the energy. Thoughtful help is still help — it doesn’t have to drain you to be valuable.

Call exhaustion what it is. You don’t owe anyone a dramatic explanation. “I don’t have the energy today” is honest, human, and enough. Respecting your own limits prevents bigger conflicts later. Sometimes saying “no” is the most loving thing you can do for your family and yourself.