You're not imagining it, this is the longest school holidays ever.

No, you're not imagining it. There's an actual reason everyone's at the end of their tether and these school holidays feel longer than previous years.

Because they are.

Obviously, the exact number of days varies depending on your state and territory, and whether your children attend a public or private school, but the summer break ranges from five to nine weeks… yep two whole months. In a row. (Yikes).

In NSW for example, most students at public schools won't return to classrooms until Wednesday, February 5. Some are even later.

As a teacher confirmed to Mamamia, "Yes, these are actually the longest holidays. It's the combination of the change from two of the staff development days being moved from the end of the year to the start, and an extra day because of the leap year."

"And just a general 'feeling' because compared to recent years, we finished the year quite late and so we start late," she added.

"The holidays before Christmas go really quickly, and the days after go much slower. So these 'long' holidays are actually longer by days, but also by perception, made longer again."

Watch: The different types of school parents. Post continues below.

One of the main problems lies in the fact that many parents work full time and have four weeks of annual leave, yet their kids could be off for nine weeks just in summer alone.

The maths isn't mathing.

So. What. Do. You. Do. With. Them?

Vacation care and camps are so expensive. Not everyone has free help (AKA grandparents) either. So, how do you keep them entertained, fed, not fighting and not permanently glued to YouTube, whilst remaining sane and employed?

We checked in with the Mamamia community to see how they were faring at this pointy final countdown for back-to-school. And it seems we're all "one team, one dream" on this.

The parents are not okay.

The general sentiment is just that it needs to be over. Immediately.

"The system is broken! I am broken! How on earth are we supposed to juggle this with four weeks leave a year?" Yasmin* told me.

How indeed, when we have another block of holidays coming down the pipeline in April.

"I am too exhausted to even form a coherent sentence about my thoughts. This has been the longest school holidays of my life. I don't think I've been by myself once in five weeks," Nina* told me.

Amara added: "It's like a round of The Hunger Games in which I'm avoiding death, but the rounds of 'I'm hungry' are sending me into a mental rage spiral where everyone and everything needs to get the hell away from me."

Amara, stay strong, fellow tribute, you are nearly back to The Capitol.

For others, it's a case of the cost versus risk versus guilt conundrum that's the hardest.

"I had to reduce my work hours, so it's had a financial impact on my family. We are staying home, and the kids are having more screen time than usual. Feeling guilty about the screens, but leaving the house usually costs money. I'm feeling really out of routine. My mood is flat," Aaliyah told me.

Meanwhile, others spoke of having to do a mish-mash of taking turns to do annual leave or work from home, while also calling on grandparents for favours to plug the gaps.

Even the parents who are teachers — and therefore don't have to worry about annual leave — are over it.

"The only benefit is not having to rush around in the mornings, but I'm a teacher and find it easier being at school dealing with 30 teenagers than my own three kids! I hate looking for ideas of things to do and the cost of everything. And if we want to take them anywhere, we have to deal with 500 other stressed-out parents looking for some respite. But if we stay at home, they are climbing the walls," Tracey said.

While Priya* added, "It's just too long and not enough affordable options for parents to 'entertain' the kids. Camps are super expensive. And my children are neurodivergent, so can't go to many camps as they either get overwhelmed or excluded and teased. I had to dial back my work to almost zero over the holidays (I'm a freelancer)."

While this should be a time for a break from the daily grind, modern living means many of us are having to juggle both work and multiple kids who will let you know immediately if they aren't entertained enough.

"I'm not focused at work, they've relegated themselves to their rooms. Yesterday, the whole house was in conflict as they wanted to do different things, and I was struggling to get them there. My eldest daughter told me we live in the most boring house ever… that hurt," Mila said.

"I know they are only little for so long and I want to spend time with them, but there are three of them, and they fight, and I have run out of ideas on what to do, and I'm trying to get some work done, but I can't because they're always there or start touching my laptop if I work near them. I'm losing my mind," Mei added.

Sometimes throwing money at a problem is the only way. "I have never spent so much on Uber Eats in my life!! The weather has been crazy, and so they haven't been out and about as much, so I have had to keep them entertained by watching the Uber delivery maps," Aisha said.

And in some cases, even the children are getting jack of it.

"You know the holidays are going on too long when even the 16-year-old asks when school is starting," Sophie said.

So no, you have not been gaslit.

These holidays are super long, and there is some comfort in knowing you are not alone. Everyone's feeling it.

So, stay strong, you're nearly there. 'Only' one to two weeks to go… depending on your school.

*Names have been changed for privacy. 

How are you feeling about the school holidays? Share in the comments below.

Feature Image: Getty.