It’s been a long time since I’ve peacefully woken up and quickly forgotten a feel-good dream from my deep REM slumber. As you may have guessed, I have burnout to blame for that. Even before I hit the minimum eight hours of shuteye, my mind already becomes aware of my body’s tossing and turning after clocking in five hours of shallow sleep. The moment my brain starts to string sensible words together, the flood of work backlog I’ve been brushing off comes crashing in all at once.
It’s only been five seconds since I opened my eyes but my heart rate is already high enough to absolve me from doing my daily 2-kilometer run. Despite the long list of tasks I have to cross off my docket, I sit on the edge of my bed only to lie down again for the next five hours. I’m fully awake by then but I just can’t seem to drag myself to my desk and start working.
It took me a while (and numerous tabs of web searches) before finding out that I could be experiencing burnout. For those who are unfamiliar, it’s a feeling of chronic stress and vital exhaustion that results from workplace tension that hasn’t been successfully managed.
Even though burnout isn’t a diagnosable psychological disorder, it should still be taken seriously. Personally, it’s hard to determine if you’re already experiencing this especially if you’re not in the right state of mind. That’s exactly why you should be aware of the tell tale signs of burnout so you’d be able to have better means of overcoming it.
SIGNS OF BURNOUT
You’re really, really tired.
Tired is an understatement when you’re dealing with burnout. Rather, it’s an overwhelming sense of fatigue that drains and depletes your energy even though you haven’t really done anything yet. Just the idea of doing your work already repels you and it feels as though the magnetic field around your bed becomes thrice as strong.
Chronic health issues are starting to surface.
A stuffy nose due to colds can easily be anything but most people only associate it with allergies. Although that’s true, it might as well point you to the onset symptoms of burnout. If you already feel your immune system becoming more vulnerable because of frequent headaches, stomach aches and muscle pain, it might be because you’re overworking yourself.
Cynicism.
We’ve all had our sporadic moments of self-doubt and misanthropic urges; however, burnout takes this to an entirely new level. In the beginning, you’ll start to lose your sense of enjoyment over the things you loved to do. Hints of pessimism start to creep in by amplifying your preexisting worries and tensions and more often than not, this interferes with your productivity. Isolation then becomes an enticing option especially if you feel detached from the people around you.
Your body clock is broken.
With all the heavy thoughts hanging above your head, it might be harder for you to fall asleep at night. You can blame the newest Netflix show you’re binging but if you do some introspection, you’ll come to realize that you’re leaning closer towards insomnia-induced burnout. If you don’t act on this, you might experience prolonged exhaustion that stretches throughout the day.
If you’re starting to feel the collective repercussions of the symptoms above, maybe it’s time to recognize that you’re starting to tap into burnout territory. For the sake of your sanity and well-being, you can try these ways to overcome burnout.
RECOVERING FROM BURNOUT
Recognize your condition.
Before you can fully commit to alleviating your tensions from burnout, you must recognize what condition you’re in or else you wouldn’t be able to treat the problem properly. It might be hard for some people to come into terms with the overbearing stress they’re feeling but knowing the specifics of your issues would make it easier for you to recover.
Connect with people.
Interacting with others is crucial in recovering from burnout because it not only strengthens your relationships, but it also takes your mind off your worries. Reconnect with your family and friends to remind yourself that there are a lot of people who support you. Don’t think that you’ll be a burden since most people are actually flattered when you entrust them with what you’re feeling. At the same time, steer away from people who exude negativity because you have enough of that to begin with.
Reevaluate your priorities.
Allow yourself to say no. Even though you have that inherent desire to do everything and please everyone all at once, don’t overextend yourself. It won’t be taken against you if you put your health first over that job that’s being offered to you. Take the time to try relaxation techniques like yoga and meditation, or nourish your creative side every once in a while by pursuing a hobby.
Exercise daily and maintain a healthy diet.
It goes without saying that exercise paired with balanced meals are good for your mind and body. As delicious as those french fries and chocolate sundae sound, try to minimize the intake of sugary and carbon-rich food since it can cause a crash in energy later in the day. Even though staying active seems like a chore, it’s going to be a lot easier when you get started. Once you’ve established a routine, your body will intrinsically have the need for your daily workout session and you’ll end up feeling better than before.
Found this article helpful? Let others see it by pinning any of these images below!
Nice. Burnout is a bitch and sometimes, it’s hard to realize when you have it. I know from my personal experience, I over procrastinate, even on the simplest tasks at work. One thing that helped me alot was to break routine to do something enjoyable. Even when im stuck in a rat race and feel like I have no extra time to do things, I risk staying out late to see a movie, or go to a performance that I wanted to see and it makes the next day enjoyable.
All good tips!
I get the body clock being broken I go through bouts with my internal clock being off, it mostly stems from stupid daylight saving time which I wish would go away here in the US, it was up for being voted out this year and then CORONA hit, so bigger fish to fry at this point.
Gosh, I can’t imagine how that must feel like for you there! Still, I hope you’re doing fine despite the pandemic. 🙂
My body clock is very broken, I shall take some of these tips into account and try them out!
I’ve been there too! Hopefully, these tips can help you as much as they helped me!
It has been a long time since I have taken care of my own personal development and reading this I realize how important it is for my health to get my mind healthy again.
I’m so proud of you for this realization! There’s truly nothing more important than taking care of our mental health. I hope you’re doing well!
I’ve had burnout a few times and it’s not fun. Thanks for sharing.
I agree with you there, Jenn!
What’s tricky about burnout in my opinion is that it’s symptoms are so similar to depression and they have very different treatements.
This is so true! It’s also why a lot of people self-diagnose themselves and end up feeling a lot worse than before. In any case, I hope you’re doing well despite the pandemic!
Great tips! Taking a step back and reevaluating my priorities is how I curb the burnout! Trying to stay on track and avoid the burnout all together, but it’s a learning curve, for sure!
I’m glad you’ve been able to get past your burnout! 🙂
Amazing tips! This time, I’m stuck with my blogging and freelance projects. It has become unmanaged I must say. With your tips, I may manage things.
Thanks, Puja! I’m also trying to handle a lot of things at once because of blogging. The most we could do is to really take a step back, assess our situation and prioritize our mental health.
Amazing post! I really afree on your thoughts about connecting with people, these days we have become so engrossed in our lives we forget to get in touch with our near and dear ones .
This is so true! Even when people are already together in one room, they still choose to scroll on their phones instead of engaging in conversation.
Really great post. After two years of giving birth to my second, I’m still trying to adjust to sleeping and getting a good night’s rest. I hear “fantom” cries and wake up suddenly sometimes.
Being a mom is really tough! I hope you get your well-deserved rest soon, Angelika!
Very informative post! It is important for us to know if we are burnt out and you have given the signs. I agree that exercise and connecting with others always should be a priority. Thanks for sharing!
You’re welcome, Nishtha!
Like many of the commenters here, I’ve experienced burnout many of times — especially in college. Thank you for sharing this guide.
I relate to you on that one! College really brings burnout on a whole new level, right?
Good tips! Burnout is something extremely overlooked in this hustle culture!
Exactly! It’s like everyone just wants to go into a productivity overdrive all the time.
Really valuable information! The fatigue and executive dysfunction were very real for me when I was really badly burned out. But I just kept telling myself I was being lazy. Posts like this are so necessary so we can see that these are symptoms instead of a personal failure
I honestly felt the same way before, thinking that I was overcome by laziness. That’s what really inspired me to write the post after I reeled my way out of burnout! Thanks, Maria!
I have definitely felt the burn of burnout and it’s a topic I’ve talked about on my blog as well. I’ve found that people pleasers can be at an increased risk for burnout because we try so hard to make everyone around us happy – which is actually an impossible task. Great tips!
I relate to that! I’m also glad that you’ve reeled yourself out of burnout territory, Kelsey!
So very important to reevaluate priorities and try to find that right balance. Burnout is a major problem nowadays and your article shed light on such an important issue. Great tips!
Thanks, Monica!
I’m really happy to see a post on burnout, it should really be talked about more and not prided as a good thing. I can be found guilty of feeling happy that I’m burnt out even tho the lasting effect can last for weeks. It sucks but I’m glad there’s more awareness x