Avoid Burnout

Burnout seems to be everywhere, my clients are experiencing it, I've experienced it and so have members of my family.

Burnout is a real issue for those who have experienced it. Burnout is not always easy to self-diagnose as you may end up saying things like “I’m just tired, or I feel off, of my energy is low” meaning you could end up ignoring it, rather than looking at ways to prevent it.

If not treated properly burnout can have a significant impact on your overall physical, mental and emotional wellbeing.

Here are 5 Emotional signs and symptoms of burnout

• Sense of failure and self-doubt.
• Feeling helpless, trapped, and defeated.
• Detachment, feeling alone in the world.
• Loss of motivation. Increasingly cynical and negative outlook.
• Decreased satisfaction and sense of accomplishment.

All of the above signs and symptoms can show up at any time, but they can also be prevented if you decide to put yourself first and put your own well-being, your mental health and emotional health as a priority.

So how do we prevent burnout and if we are in the burnout phase how do we make sure we get out of it?

First of all, we need debunk the myth that self-care is selfish. It’s not, self-care is life affirming and life supporting.

Secondly, you need to put boundaries in place for yourself.

Thirdly, you need to cultivate a healthy lifestyle routine, one that allows you to compassionate and kind to yourself.

So here are 5 tips to help you reduce burnout and get you back into a healthier state of mind, body and spirit.

1.Sleep - Sleeping is a great healer. Its important that you get a good 7-8 hour of undisturbed sleep each night. Ideally you should get to bed by 10:00pm and wake at 6/6:30am every morning. When we sleep our body heals itself it and it builds your immune system and our resilience. Sleep helps you detox from the stress the strains of the day and will release any negative energy or toxins that have attached themselves to you thought the day. Sleep is the priority so start to train your brain and train yourself into a healthier sleep pattern.

2.Mindful movement - Exercise or mindful movement each day when you get out of bed, is essential. I encourage you to take 10 mins to stretch or to participate in yoga, or even go out for a walk – the main thing is to do something that is mindful and gentle. Burnout is susceptible to high octane, high intensity exercise so weightlifting, running, spinning all of these activities are going to increase the stress on your body, your mind and your emotions. It will produce excess adrenaline that is not required when trying to overcome burnout so focus on mindful movements and be gentle with yourself

3.Meditation - Meditation does not need to be difficult, it is a mindful practise of trying to quieten the mind and be in the present moment. Meditation requires you to connect with your breath, sit still and allow you to connect with yourself, moving you from activity into silence. Meditation is a practise, and it requires practise and commitment. It will help you reduce overanalysing and help you relax, refocus and get the pause for breath that you really do need.

4.Connection - When in burnout you want to shut down, most want to hide away from the world and their network. Connection is very important; you need to reach out to a trusted friend or a family member, have a cup of tea and share how you’re feeling. Burnout makes you want to be isolated, but what you need most in burnout or facing burnout is a friend - someone who can be supportive listen and one whom we can remain connected to. This will help ground you and feel part of something bigger than ourself.

5.Nutrition -Burnout entices you towards comfort, alcohol, smoking and excess eating as a way to find comfort but it's essential that you don't reach for that extra glass of wine, more beers or shots as they may give you that quick fix, but it will only last for a short amount of time. The best thing to do when facing burnout or in burnout is to eat healthy and to stop drinking alcohol. Alcohol has been proven to be a depressive and anxiety inducing. The same applies to food, when you eat foods that only give you a quick fix such as chocolate, cookies and sugary treats you might think they’re helping, but it will only increase your hormonal system to be in high alert. The best thing to do is eat three meals a day, reduce alcohol or have no alcohol at all and supplement sweet or sugary treats with more natural sweet flavours such as melon, mango passionfruit, apples, oranges. A healthy diet will give you a healthy mind and in burnout a healthy mind is essential

If you follow these five steps regularly incorporate them into your daily routine and you commit yourself to helping yourself heal, you will see impressive results in a short period of time.

Remember you are the priority, your health, your emotions and your mindset need to be rebalanced and realigned.

You deserve to live a healthy, vibrant and happy life.