Preventing and Recovering from Burnout
It is NEVER too late to implement any of these ideas and strategies. In fact, the sooner you start making changes, the sooner you will notice improvements and start to feel better.
However there is a caution here. The same one we spoke about it in last blog post. It’s that it’s not always just up to you. The workplace and social norms/expectations have some answering to do and have a responsibility here also. Now you might not be up for hard core advocacy, activism and social change right now, and that’s perfectly fine and understandable. There are mental health organisations and peak bodies trying to do some of that for you. But never forget that every person has the power to influence the social discourse (dialogue and dominant beliefs) on the topic. If you don’t feel up to sharing your story publicly yet, or ever, that’s ok. It might be that your loved ones or support network could be your voice on the matter if you consent to that. Or you might find some healing in writing in the future. Or being interviewed on a podcast. Or making your own podcast. Who knows! The important thing right now, however, is intervening and healing. Let’s stop things in their tracks and prevent further burnout / decline / damage. Let’s start to heal and get well again.
Seek support
Too often we believe we “should” be able to manage, cope and sort out our own problems. False. We are social beings and wired for connection. The further we retreat into the shadows thinking it’s “safe” and “no-one will ever know what I’m going through”, the harder it is to make changes and start to feel better. Reaching out to those closest to you is a compliment; it says that you trust them enough to share the very scary prospect of falling apart. Being able to ask for help indicates adaptiveness and is a sign of high mental health and resilience.
For professionals working in isolation or from home, stay connected to social groups, making efforts for virtual-coffees or seeking one-on-one catch ups are invaluable. If that’s not possible you could seek our local community groups, MeetUps or other interest groups. Of course, it goes without saying that if you are burning out, you want to avoid people whose mood or outlook is negative, as that can bring you further down. Ultimately, seeking help can also include a professional mental health therapist who can gently help guide you to recovery and help be another pair of eyes on your situation. You’d be surprised how often people remark this as being helpful to even simply have another person’s perspective, let alone someone who might actually understand and show genuine empathy with what you’re going through.
Reframe how you think about work
The World Health Organisation now defines burnout as an occupational phenomenon, so we must ask: how do you view your work? Perhaps you hate what you do, but trudge along every day because the paycheque feeds your family? Maybe that is enough for some folks, but for many people, feeling a lack of connection, value and meaning in their work is the first and major warning sign that burnout may lay ahead.
Re-evaluate it. Even if you don’t enjoy elements of your work, can you find some parts which provide you meaning and purpose: parts which you enjoy and which give value to you and others? If a sense of purpose, meaning or value is low in the tank, seriously considering a job search or dusting off the network contacts might be necessary. However if that’s not practical for you right now, a change in the work-life dynamic sounds like the next best, and necessary, thing. This could include working less, emphasising much-enjoyed activities outside of work hours, or perhaps taking some leave in order to get away from the situation entirely and re-evaluate what you’d like to do. Sometimes having a break can help people realise how much you enjoy something else, or what you’ve been ignoring, or what your true values might be. The Japanese have a saying or approach to this, “Ikigai”, which encourages people to find the reason to jump out of bed in the morning.
Check if you need to re-prioritise
Boundaries. Are there places where you could have clearer or firmer boundaries? If you work for an organisation, do you really need to take on an extra project or portfolio? If you are the kind of person that would normally jump at that, refraining from offering or volunteering for extra work might be hard at first. But remember what is suffering and being sacrificed if you do it. Consider how often you say yes and then regret it later. Consider how easily you say yes. Consider your relationship with the word ‘no’… does this need some attention and practice? If you work for yourself, this can also be challenging, as work related tasks often bleed into typical ‘after-hours’ time at home. Late night computer tasks become the norm all too quickly. Setting alarms or reminders on your phone to finish urgent tasks, being accountable by asking another household member to assist you with gentle reminders to come and join them in a different, winding down activity, only working late 1-2 nights a week, not 7. The Eisenhower Matrix is a simple but useful quadrant tool to help categorise urgent and important tasks, and help structure the rest.
Turn off tech for some period every day. What? Turn my phone off? Log off my computer? Stunned silence or a ream of excuses usually follows. Tech, especially with an increase of working from home arrangements, can give the unhealthy impression that we are available at all hours. In addition to that being a boundary issue (as above), there are other problems. Looking at screens and their blue lights in the evening can disrupt sleep and mess with our naturally produced melatonin. Do those emails really need to be responded to today? Imagine what you could do instead of being glued to your phone for work purposes (or even social purposes while we’re on it). When was the last time you considered arts, crafts, playing an instrument, doing a sport, dancing in the lounge room, learning a new skill, or doing another activity that will be a strong antidote to burnout.
Go slower: Relax and sleep. Sounds boring but it is not rocket science and it is almost always the first thing to be skipped. For decades experts have been advising us to relax in some way: yoga, tai chi, meditation, walking, mindfulness. How often have you caught yourself saying that you couldn’t possibly make time for structured relaxation activities, that it would only stress you further? The irony is this: when you make time for going slower, rest and decent sleep, you are more energised, productive, engaged and creative to complete the work you need to get done. When we push and push and push ourselves, we become less productive, less efficient, grumpier and often resentful. For those interested in how rest can be used as resistance, have a read here. And sleep. Ah the elusive sleep. Science clearly shows us that insufficient or poor-quality sleep leads us into serious (physical and mental) health issues, such as heart disease, obesity, diabetes, and – most relevant for burnout — depression (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2018). Here’s a challenge for you: if you really believe that you need to go at full speed 24/7 and that you can’t (don’t deserve?) to have downtime, what’s going on with your self-esteem? Sleep is the most basic form of self-respect.
Make exercise important & regular
Sure, exercise might be the last thing you feel like doing if you’re already running out of steam. However movement and exercise is one of the most powerful antidote to stress and burnout. It boosts our mood and endorphins, changing our chemistry for us. If you really can’t set aside, 30 minutes a day for an activity, can you take three 10-minute breaks and walk around the block? Can you use the stairs instead of elevator? Can you park further away? Can you walk instead of drive? Can you make a small change 3 times a week, if you can’t do it every day? It also helps to choose activities that we naturally enjoy. You can also get creative and sneaky with it, tricking the brain into not realising it’s exercise! Like cycling with a friend to the markets, swimming at the beach, dancing with the kids or partner in the kitchen, rollerblading, martial arts or something else. Enlist the help of an external motivator by asking someone to do it with you, or to help keep you accountable by checking in. If that’s not your style, download one of the many easy and free apps for a 10 minute workout at home, on the verandah or on the work rooftop. See if you can be fully present with the sensations of your body moving as you do the exercise, or perhaps the wind on your face, rather than focusing on thoughts.
Go for a healthy diet
Most of us know that we should have a bit less alcohol, caffeine, stimulants or sugary processed foods; it’s just getting ourselves to do it. Most of us also know that those comfort foods, such as sugar-laden items, breads, pastas, biscuits, and chocolate, quickly give you a lot of energy, but then cause you to crash a few hours later. Not to mention increasing our risk of tooth decay and diabetes. We can counter this by ensuring we maintain sufficient healthy fats in the diet (e.g., a good ratio of greater Omega 3 to Omega 6 fats, which most people have in reverse) and avoiding foods with many additives; both of these imbalances can throw off a person’s mood. Changing eating habits can take time, so maybe tackle one bad dietary habit at a time until you are eating for optimum health. (categories adapted from Smith et al, 2021). For the workaholics, this control over eating can also be seductive. Be careful and honest with yourself here. Find what works for you. Remind yourself you can enjoy treats in balance, just try not to have them too regularly or binge on them. Fill up on protein and healthy fats, that way you’ll reach for unhealthy snacks less. You might like to take a curious approach and take a journey to find out more about what your body likes and needs. Seeing a nutritionist or dietitian may be helpful for some, while many of us just need to own up to the amount of unhealthy foods we allow ourselves access to. We can also rationalise our eating in response to stress or emotional changes, and this can bring short term comfort. It can also be a familial or cultural approach to soothing. Whatever your story is, remember that even small changes can start to change your mood, chemical composition, and overall health, ultimately reducing the risk or impact of burnout.
