Life can be extremely stressful at times. Burnout is a completely normal response, so don’t beat yourself up if you feel exhausted, unfocused, and unmotivated. No matter if you are a student, parent, or white collar worker, stress can exist in multiple forms of your life.
We all know a little stress from time to time can be good. However, living in a consistent state of high stress is horrible for a person's mental and physical health. Prolonged states of stress can cause a person to start experiencing mental and physical exhaustion or burnout.
This is an extremely common condition that, according to the Gallup, about 76% of employees experience at least sometimes. That is why employers and schools must create work spaces that are catering to the mental and physical health of employees and students. It is equally as important for employees and students to create spaces for themselves, in their off time, that allows them to care for themselves both physically and emotionally.
WHAT IS BURN OUT?
Help Guide defines it as, “Burnout is a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion caused by excessive and prolonged stress.” This can cause a person to have anxiety, depression, lower productivity, lack of ambition, and even change in appetite.
To fully understand this, one must understand the biological process of stress. When a person is stressed their body produces a chemical called cortisol. However, they always have at least some cortisol in their system because cortisol is also necessary for everyday functioning. So in order to produce more cortisol than normal, a person’s hypothalamus has to send out the message to their pituitary gland that there is a stressor.
From there, the pituitary gland floods their blood stream with stress signals that go down to the adrenal gland receptors. Then from there, the adrenal gland sends out enough cortisol to get that person through the stressful situation.
Well if the stressful situation never ends, the message never stops getting sent out. This can cause a person to have an overload of cortisol in their system, which causes all the symptoms of burnout. Regulating your stress can really help soothe symptoms of burnout.
5 WAYS TO SPOT BURNOUT
Burnout is kind of complex to identify sometimes, so here are five tell tale signs that you are in fact experiencing burnout.
1. You’re getting sick more than normal.
Due to the excessive lack of energy caused by burnout, the body has to allocate energy to the most important functions, so other functions in the body begin to decline. This includes the health and strength of the immune system. This causes a person to start getting sick more often, but also burnout increases a person's chances of getting heart disease.
2. You have unexplained stomach issues.
Burnout can cause problems with digestion. This can include unexplained belly pains, diarrhea, constipation, heartburn, nausea, and vomiting.
3. You are very anxious.
Excessive stress can cause anxiety because of the overproduction of cortisol. Normally when a particular event is causing burnout, after the stressor goes away the symptoms begin to alleviate. However, if the stressor is more permanent, the prolonged excessive stress can cause other hormone imbalances over long periods of time. This can make the anxiety more permanent. That is why it is important for people experiencing burn out to properly find ways to decrease stress and rest.
4. You are experiencing extreme exhaustion.
A symptom that is as clear as the name. Burnout can cause a person to experience extreme exhaustion. This can make it harder for a person to function properly day to day, which could possibly add more stress. However, if the body is not getting what it needs it will force its needs on you. Finding ways to relax, resting more, and if you can, satiate the stressor can help you regain your energy.
5. You are irritable for unexplained reasons.
Irritability is a common symptom of burnout. The excessive stress, exhaustion, and anxiety all can cause irritability. This can mean that normal inconveniences upset you, you find yourself being irritated for no reason, and noises, smells, and other sensory experiences that you deem unfavorable upset you more than normal.
If you are experiencing two or more of these symptoms you might be experiencing burnout.
5 WAY TO COMBAT YOUR BURNOUT
Burnout can be really hard to overcome especially if the stressor is something permanent in your life. There is hope though! Here's five tips on how to combat your burnout:
1. Practice mindfulness
Slowing down and being more intentional in your day can help you eliminate unnecessary stressors and help you manage anxiety about the necessary ones. This includes waking up earlier, eating a nutritious breakfast, pausing throughout the day to take a deep breath, and even releasing tension in your body regularly.
2. Journal
Taking about 10-15 minutes out of your day to check in with yourself by writing down your feelings is a good way to manage stress. This can help you identify what is making you feel stressed and address it properly. It can also help you process uncomfortable emotions in a safe environment.
3. Create time to do things you like
During stressful times people tend to neglect themselves. That is why it is important to intentionally create time to do things that make you happy. No matter if it is art, playing video games, watching movies, or even just spending quality time with loved ones, do it. This is a great way to help someone dealing with burnout de-stress even if you don’t feel like doing anything, push yourself to do things you love. You will feel a lot better afterwards.
4. Rest
This seems like an obvious answer, but make sure you are getting 8 hours of sleep each night. This is easier said than done, but in the process of healing burnout it is important to rest. Sleep can also help you create a boundary with your stressor because there’s no reason to lose sleep over it, it will be there tomorrow. Create a daily cut off time for dealing with stressful things, so that you can ensure you are getting enough sleep.
5. Go for walks
Nature and exercise can be very useful in dealing with stress. That is why going for 15-30 minute walks can be very useful for combating stress. It also helps oxygen flow in the body which has a calming effect and releases endorphins. Managing stress can help cure burnout, so take care of yourself even in the ‘little ways’.
Burnout is complex, and there are different severity levels. People all experience burnout differently, so if you even think you are experiencing it talk to your doctor.
HEALING BURNOUT: A PROCESS
There isn’t a one time fix it answer to burnout. It is a process that takes time, and sometimes in more severe cases it may require medication to treat the symptoms.
Each person's stressor is different, but the one thing everyone experiencing burnout has in common is: They need to find ways to de-stress and rest. Rest and self-care are the most important parts of healing burnout.
As you go on your journey to heal your burnout, visit my instagram (@insearchofamani) for selfcare tips and an online community to support you.
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