I was burned out by 25. I couldn’t even move even one muscle but I came out of it.
In the amidst of corona, I had a bad phase. I was trapped in the walls of my house. I was not going out, I wasn’t interacting with people. Years of stress and aggression came out of my head and I was done.
I’m from India and we don’t know the burnout. I have consulted psychologist and they never helped me to shed light into right direction. They assumed I had “bipolar” as I tend to show extreme emotions. Let me discuss with you how I figured out my burnout and how I overcame out of it.
My biggest symptoms was emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion, manifested as fatigue, cynicism, and inefficacy. I was lying down in bed 24*7. I felt my brain is never getting recharged. I just lost my happiness.
Burnout can happen due to many reasons, my ADHD bounded with corona put me into a chronic phase of unhappiness, it can happen due to multiple reasons, when the balance of deadlines, demands, working hours, and other stressors outstrips rewards, recognition, and relaxation. The key components that contribute to burnout are workload, control, reward, community, fairness, and values. In a glance, imbalance in any of these areas above mentioned can lead to burnout. It can lead to a range of physical and mental health problems, including depression, anxiety, and cardiovascular disease.
It took time to recover. These are some of the things that helped to recover. Recovery from burnout takes time and cannot be rushed.
- Taking a break and doing “nothing” is crucial for recovery, and it’s not being unproductive or being on holiday. It is essential to recognize the need for rest and take the time to rejuvenate the mind and body.
- Surrounding oneself with people who can provide support, guidance, and accountability is helpful. These people can include therapists, coaches, mentors, or even trusted friends and family members.
- Mindfulness practices, exercise, and good sleep hygiene can also aid in recovery from burnout. Mindfulness practices such as meditation and deep breathing can help calm the mind and promote relaxation. Exercise can help reduce stress and improve mood, and good sleep hygiene can help ensure that the body is well-rested and energized.
- It’s important to prioritize self-care, establish healthy boundaries, and learn to say no to excessive demands. Self-care can include activities such as exercise, cycling spending time with loved ones, or engaging in hobbies delegating tasks when possible. Learning to say no to excessive demands is an essential part of setting boundaries and prioritizing self-care. Cycling, meditations and “going out” altogether helped a lot to recover from the state of burnout.
Find new hobbies and interests. Indulge in those without anything in return, be yourself. It’s not something you can rush out of. Your brain is scarred just like any other human part. Give it some time, It will be up and running in no time. “It’s not about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward.” Life happens all it matter is to keep moving forward. One step at a time.
