Only this week have I realised quite how much I have on my plate. I like to keep busy – you know I do. Nonetheless, sometimes, there are signs that something (or everything) has been taking up too much of our energy for too long. These signs can suggest that we need to prioritise and organise ourselves in a different way. I want to write about it this week because the potential for burnout is always there.
There are some quotes throughout from M. Bourland. Thank you for your contribution!
What is Burnout?
First, we need to discusses what ‘burnout’ means. If we don’t know the signs, and we don’t know what it is, how can we hope to help ourselves?
My understanding of burnout is there it’s a long-term stress that goes unregulated, and therefore eventually saps our mental and emotional energy – that’s how it feels. In my experience it feels like your body is shutting out the rest of the world. And this feeling gets increasingly worse the more we sink into that burnout.
…You belong to yourself, and you are allowed to make choices that serve you, not your career. So breathe; be kind to yourself; be brave. There are ways to reset your life, to find work that matters to you. You have options, even if you can’t see them right now.
The good thing is, if you catch these signs early, you can can start to look after yourself and reorganising yourself as I said above.
So, what are some of the signs?
You start to lose interest in things you used to enjoy doing
This is a common sign of depression, actually, but it can be a sign that your body is too physically emotionally and mentally exhausted to spare energy on something that is not necessary for survival…
…just a thought.
For me, an early sign of burnout is when I start losing interest in my reading and writing, in particular. More so the writing, though, because quite often I feel I’m too busy to read – but then if I really wanted to do it then I would make time for it. It’s a bit like writing my poetry anthology: I put aside the time to write the book because I wanted – needed – to write it. Be careful with this train of thought – putting too much pressure on yourself can add to the burnout. Believe me.
For me, burnout was a symptom, an offshoot, an indicator that something about my relationship to work required recalibrating. In my case, the behaviors that led me to burn out had deep roots. M. Bourland
You start to isolate yourself from those around you
Again, from my experience, when this happens our mind just can’t take the social interaction and pick up on the social cues in the same way – it’s too exhausting. I need a break. So my brain automatically tries to avoid that situation.
Depending on the reason for burnout, the social interaction can actually help, though. As it’s kind of ‘inspired’ your brain back into motion. It’s up to you to make that call.
Even the smallest of tasks feels overwhelming
You have a list of tasks that is getting longer and longer; adding to the overwhelm. This feeling spirals until you get more and more burnt out and you physically can’t do anything. That’s why I suggest you be careful about not putting too much pressure on yourself.
My recovery required a deeper look inside…the acknowledgement of the struggle to set boundaries, the tendencies toward self-neglect, the inability to derive satisfaction from my accomplishments — these were all learned things. M. Bourland
A big symptom of burnout for me is feeling trapped in whatever I’m doing, despite knowing how content an activity would usually make me feel. My attention feels too far spread; I feel locked in that tiredness, that empty feeling.
Ideally you’d recognise the burnout before you got to this stage, but just know it’s our body’s way of telling us we need to slow down and take a break. It’s almost like bringing yourself back to you, and realising that our brain is in so many different places and feels like it can’t cope.
But the reality is, it can cope, we just need to be conscious of the fact we’re struggling.
A little bit on Covid…
The Covid – 19 pandemic is not an innocent bystander in this. Having to adjust the way we work and to blended learning has directed our attention more so to how the way we work affects our physical and mental health. We’ve had to strategise and become more streamlined and in order to adjust as a society. We’ve e had to look at at the issue as a whole, and that can be a lot to take in.
A few extra points from me:
The first step in reducing the likelihood of burnout is recognising when you’re exhausted, and when you’re beginning to the affected by the tiredness.
I would suggest scheduling increased periods of rest – and by rest, I mean completely switching off.
That might mean a nap in the afternoon, or setting regular reminders to make yourself a cup of tea – so at least you’re having regular breaks.
Set boundaries of how much work you can realistically do in a day. To admit this is not putting yourself down – in fact, from my experience, people respect you more – as they can see the confidence that comes with knowing your limits.
– D
You can pre-order the Prevailed Hope Ebook! The link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B099M8VN2Y/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_glt_6S34SQMB4Z1K4RN13A4A If Ebooks are not for you, paperbacks will be released on the 12th of October, along with the Ebook.
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