Joanna Gaines' Battle With Burnout Led To A 'Disappointing' But Vital Choice

When you're lucky enough to find something you love to do, it's natural to want to work hard. And while constantly being booked and busy has some upsides, it does get to a point where the thrill of the hustle turns into full-blown exhaustion. Hard work can yield incredible success, but running on low fuel isn't sustainable for anyone, not even Joanna Gaines, the queen of modern farmhouses and interior design. 

On a September 2026 episode of Hoda Kotb's podcast, "Joy 101 with Hoda Kotb," Joanna Gaines, who is an ageless beauty even when she's makeup-free, opened up about when she realized her workload began overshadowing her purpose. She recalled a moment three years prior when her day-to-day routine started to feel taxing and uninspiring rather than the passion she had chased for so long. This led her and her husband to take a step back and take a three-month summer break to gain clarity over their goals and long-term vision. 

Of course, things are always easier said than done. It took a lot of sacrifice to step away; they had to disappoint people, cancel active commitments, and hedge the financial costs of putting everything on pause. But Gaines believes that was such a small price to pay for what they got in return. Taking that time off allowed her to be fully present for her kids and rediscover her core purpose. 

If you thought Joanna Gaines was simply physically tired when she decided she and her husband needed to take a three-month hiatus, you'd only be scratching the surface of what she was navigating. For the co-founder of lifestyle brand Magnolia, the true breaking point was actually what she described to Kotb in the podcast episode as a "soul weariness." 

Gaines clearly saw signs that her work was eroding her mental health as she explained that she began experiencing a sense of dread when facing her daily tasks. She even lightheartedly joked that sometimes you're so mentally exhausted that you're wishing to get sick just to have a reason to step away. The interior designer knew she didn't want to ignore that subtle red flag. 

After the much-needed break, Gaines told Kotb her focus is now on being proactive about her well-being. She said, "I can't pause my life for months ... So what are the daily, weekly disciplines so that you're nurturing yourself?" For Gaines, she leans into simple, grounding rituals like tending to her garden, spending quality time with her kids, taking long walks, and journaling her thoughts and feelings. The "Magnolia Table: At the Farm" star no longer waits for total exhaustion to settle in. Instead, she uses those intentional daily resets as a way to refill her tank.