Everyone experiences stress. But when it feels like there’s no relief, it’s important to ask ourselves whether we might be experiencing burnout.
Consider these three potential signs of burnout (Nagoski & Nagoski, 2020):
- Emotional exhaustion: This can look like significant fatigue regardless of the demands. You may notice you get overwhelmed more easily than in the past.
- Depersonalization: We can recognize this sign when we want to care about something or someone’s experience, or perhaps our own experience, but can’t find the emotions or the energy. Depersonalization is the depletion of empathy, caring and compassion.
- Decreased sense of accomplishment: This sign can be recognized as feeling that nothing you do makes a difference. Tasks and efforts may begin to feel pointless. You may find yourself having thoughts like “who cares?” and “nothing I do matters”
How To Get Out Of Burnout
Burnout works a little like credit cards: easy to spend, but increasingly difficult to get back in balance.
Build Healthier Habits
The Healthy Mind Platter (Rock and Siegel, 2011) offers focus points for keeping our nervous system in a balanced state. Scheduling in daily time for each focus point can help us climb out of burnout.
These focus points include:
Sleep Time
Focus Time
Physical Time
Downtime
Playtime
Check-in Time
Connecting Time
Process Your Stress
Two researchers broke down 7 clear strategies for beginning to complete the stress response cycle so that you can begin to leave burnout behind.
These strategies are:
- Physical Activity – This includes any movement of the body, and doesn’t necessarily need to be exercise. Dancing, running, drama, going for a walk or gardening are a few options to consider.
- Deep Breathing – Breathing is a well-researched aid to calm our nervous system. Diaphragmatic breathing is recommended to support this strategy. Try breathing in and out four times, making each exhale longer than the inhale.
- Positive Social Interaction – Checking in with others can remind us that we’re connected and safe. Small talk is great for letting our nervous system know it’s okay to relax.
- Laughter – This should be genuine laughter, not socially-posed (done for politeness). It can even help just to reminisce with someone about a time that you laughed that way. Two other options are to journal about a funny event, or to watch videos you find funny.
- Affection – Research suggests a 20-second hug can change your hormones, lower your blood pressure and heart rate, and improve mood (Nagoski & Nagoski, 2020). Cuddling with a pet is a good option for this step, too!
- Crying – Crying is a physical expression of stress, or a way or body processes and releases stress. Remember to focus on the physical sensations of crying and compassionate thinking. Try your best not to continue to feed yourself negative thoughts about the topic, this takes away from the benefits and adds more stress.
- Creative Expression – Stress and creative expression are both connected to our imagination. Often when stressed, we’re imagining a million things that might go wrong or have gone wrong. Here, use imagination to your benefit to release emotions. Use writing, drawing, painting, or your favorite art form to explore your experience.
Sources:
Nagoski, E., & Nagoski, A. (2019). Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle. New York, NY: Ballantine Books.
Rock, D. & Siegel, D. (2011). Seven daily essential mental activities to optimize brain matter and create well-being. Mindsight Institute. https://drdansiegel.com/healthy-mind-platter/