By simply giving me back some brain space.

I know most of us are tired of hearing about AI all the time, how it’s going to take over our jobs, destroy our planet, make us dumb, fool us daily in the media… the list goes on. 

And yes, I’m 100% guilty of being an avid ChatGPT user. I’ve built a couple of custom GPTs to help me with consulting clients, and my day job involves implementing AI into the tools we use at work. Sometimes I genuinely wonder if I still know how to write an email the good old-fashioned way anymore. So yes, I’m totally part of the problem.

But there’s another side to it that I don’t hear talked about nearly as much. 

AI has also become my brain dump. It helps me offload some of the mental load that came with becoming a mother and frees up a little more space in my head to actually be present with my daughter.

Does AI make me a better parent? Obviously not. But does having fewer completely unnecessary things occupying my brain make me less frazzled, more patient and more present? I personally think so!

So how do I actually use it? These are some of the ways, along with prompts any mom can steal and adapt.

1. It cuts down the ridiculous amount of research I do before trips.

We travel often as some of you may know, mainly to our place in Spain, but occasionally to other wonderful destinations. The logistics however seem to change at every stage of childhood, and with every destination!

 What should I pack? What does a toddler actually need for six weeks versus five days? How do I keep her entertained on an eight-hour flight? Do I bring something from home or just buy it there?

Before AI, I would Google everything, open a million tabs, read through random websites, ask around, and eventually create my own lists.

Now I can give ChatGPT the specifics of the trip, narrow things down from there, cross-check anything important and save the conversation for later.

My prompt:

We’re travelling to [destination] for [number of days/weeks] with our [age]-year-old. We’ll have access to [washing machine/car/kitchen/etc.] and we’re planning to [beach/day trips/city sightseeing/etc.]. Create a practical packing list for my child by category. Include a separate list for the travel day, flag things parents commonly forget, and tell me what would be easier to buy once we arrive instead of packing. Keep it realistic. I do not want to overpack.

That last sentence is important. Otherwise AI apparently assumes toddlers need to relocate their entire home every time they travel.

2. It helps me figure out what to do with our weekends.

I’m a social butterfly by nature, and I’m starting to think my daughter inherited quite a bit of that from me. Yay for her inheriting something from me!

We both like getting out and doing things, but I don’t always feel like spending an hour figuring out what those things should be.

I’ll often use AI to help me find ideas based on her age, the weather, how much time we have and how far I’m willing to drive.

Instead of bouncing between Google, Instagram, event pages and Maps, I can at least start with a shortlist.

My prompt:

We’re in [city/area] with a [age]-year-old and have about [number] hours on 2026. The weather is expected to be [weather]. Give me five age-appropriate ideas within approximately [X] minutes of [area]. We’d like [outdoors/indoors/a mix], and somewhere nearby to grab coffee or eat would be a bonus. Use current information where available and only include events or businesses you can verify are open or happening on that date. Include approximate cost and why each option works well with a young child.

This is also where I’ll add things like: we’ve already been to the zoo 800 times, please give me something else.

3. It remembers the little things so I don’t have to.

This might actually be one of the most useful ones for moms because half the battle is not doing the thing. It’s remembering the thing exists. Ask daycare about next week’s schedule, buy the birthday gift, pack the extra clothes, book the appointment.

I can tell myself, I’ll remember. But I perfectly well know I won’t remember!

So instead of adding another note somewhere that I’ll probably never look at again, I can ask ChatGPT to remind me at the exact moment I’ll actually need it.

If you enable ChatGPT notifications, you can schedule one-time or recurring reminders and get notified when they’re due.

My prompt:

Remind me on [day/date] at [time] to [thing I need to remember]. If this is something I need to remember regularly, repeat it [daily/weekly/monthly/every Sunday/etc.].

For example:

Remind me every Sunday at 7 p.m. to check what my child needs for daycare that week.

Or:

Remind me two days before [event/date] to buy, pack or prepare [what I need].

This sounds ridiculously simple, but I genuinely think this is one of the best uses of AI for mental load. Because the goal isn’t to become better at remembering everything. It’s to stop expecting my brain to remember everything in the first place!

4. It helps me write messages when I know what I mean but don’t have the energy to word it.

Daycare message. Birthday RSVP. Note to another mom. Cancelling plans because my toddler woke up sick.

Are any of these difficult messages to write? No. But I often don’t feel like using my brain in that moment, and I want to make sure it’s worded properly.

My prompt:

Write me a short message to [daycare/another parent/teacher/etc.] saying [what happened or what I need to ask]. I want it to sound warm, casual and natural – not formal, overly apologetic or like it was written by AI. Keep it to two or three sentences.

I usually tweak a word or two and send it. Done.

5. It helps me create things specifically for my child.

This one is my personal favourite. Instead of Googling “toddler activities” and ending up with 500 Pinterest projects involving construction paper, glue guns and supplies I absolutely do not own, I can tell AI exactly what my daughter is into right now.

At the moment, dinosaurs are a BIG deal in our house. So I can turn that obsession into a game, scavenger hunt, silly little story or activity without having to come up with the whole thing myself.

My prompt:

My [age]-year-old is currently obsessed with [dinosaurs/animals/characters/etc.]. Give me five very simple activities we can do at home around that interest. I want things that take less than five minutes to prepare and use normal household items. Include one scavenger hunt, one creative activity and one activity that gets them moving. Keep everything age-appropriate and avoid anything that would be unsafe for a child that age.

You could do the same with bedtime stories, rainy-day games, travel activities, colouring ideas or whatever random obsession your child has at the moment..

And I think this is the part people sometimes misunderstand when I talk about using AI so much. I’m not asking it to raise my daughter obviously, and I’m not taking everything it tells me as fact. Anything involving health, safety or something genuinely important still gets checked properly.

I’m using it for the little things that somehow manage to take up a ridiculous amount of space in my brain: the packing list, the Saturday afternoon plan, the message I don’t feel like writing, the dinosaur activity.

None of those things is particularly hard. But put enough tiny decisions together and they become exhausting. So if AI can take a few of them off my plate and give me back a bit of my peace, why not.