Feel Like You’re Experiencing Burnout? Here Are Some Tips:
Feel Like You’re Experiencing Burnout? Here Are Some Tips:
So what exactly is “burnout”? It’s described as: a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion due to excessive and prolonged stress. Often, it happens when you’re feeling overwhelmed, emotionally drained, and unable to meet constant demands (Smith et al., 2022). Burnout is a common experience for people of all ages. However, just because it’s common in today’s society doesn’t mean it should be brushed off. If you feel like you’re going through burnout, your concerns are valid and you deserve to feel at ease. Continuing to push on when we find ourselves experiencing burnout can be harmful in the long-run, so it’s important for us to take active steps towards putting our well-being first.
Here are some signs that you may be burnt out:
- Chronic fatigue and exhaustion
- Loss of joy, leading to lack of productivity and poor performance of your tasks
- Having a hard time paying attention and often feeling forgetful
- It takes you a longer time to get things done than usual –– you find yourself procrastinating
- Feeling irritable –– increased mood swings and moments of angry outbursts
- Insomnia: having a hard time falling or staying asleep
- Isolating yourself, not wanting to socialize and feeling withdrawn
- Experiencing heightened anxiety and depression, feelings of worry, tension, hopelessness, and guilt
- You get sick more often, you’re more susceptible to illness because your immune system is dampened due to stress
- Using food, drugs and alcohol to cope with the burn out
Here’s what you can do:
Reach out to your social support systems:
- Even when it seems like it’s impossible for you to move past your burnout, one of the most proactive steps you can take is to seek support from others. Having someone listen to you and your struggles can help you feel more relieved from all of the stress. Feeling like we’re being heard is important. Don’t sweep your struggles under the rug –– always reach out.
Look to find balance in your life:
- It’s important for us to sometimes reframe the value we put on our work. Although the work that we do is important, it’s important to look for meaning and purpose in other areas of your life. If you’re finding that the work that you’re doing feels monotonous, remembering to seek out instances of joy can help to promote a more balanced and fulfilling life.
- Taking a break, spending time with friends and family, engaging in more frequent acts of self-care, engaging in enjoyable hobbies, and starting a new and creative project –– can all help promote balance.
Prioritize YOU:
- Evaluate your boundaries with work and studying –– remembering to say “no” when you need to.
- Set aside time to unwind and relax every day. This is important for you to be able to recharge your energy and productivity batteries so that you can continue to thrive.
- Make sure you’re sleeping enough. Sleep hygiene is definitely correlated with our mood and ability to be productive, don’t forget to get those eight hours in.
Focus on Your Health
- Exercising for 30 minutes a day can significantly improve your mood and help combat stress. Relaxing the mind and the body (even if it’s a little bit each day) will help you stay on track.
- Ensuring that you’re maintaining a nutritious and well-balanced diet can also help keep your energy levels up and impact your mood. Incorporating more Omega-3s into your diet, ensuring you're eating frequently and enough, crushing your hunger and getting your nutrients in by eating from all of the food groups –– all of these steps can help you lead a healthy lifestyle.
References:
Smith, M., Robinson, L., & Segal, J. (2022, June 1). Burnout Prevention and Treatment. HelpGuide.org. Retrieved June 22, 2022, from https://www.helpguide.org/articles/stress/burnout-prevention-and-recover...