How Do You Know if You're Burning Out
Am I stressed? Or burning out? Here's how to tell (and what to do about it!)
Burnout seems to be talked about a lot more online, which is awesome because there is now more awareness and understanding around it than ever. I think more so than not, people overlook signs of burnout, brushing it off as a bad week, stress, or anxiety. In reality, burnout can cause so much more harm to your body, mind, and spirit, and should definitely be caught early if possible.
So how do you know if you’re burning out? Here are some physical and emotional signs and signals of burnout.
Physical signs of burnout
Feeling tired and drained all the time
Lowered immunity, getting sick more often
Frequent body aches, headaches etc.
Noticeable change in appetite
Noticeable change in sleeping habits
Emotional signs of burnout
Sense of dread and failure
Self-doubt, asking yourself if it’s your fault, if it’s worth it
Feeling helpless and defeated
Detachment from the world, feeling alone
Loss of motivation
Increased cynical outlook
Decreased satisfaction and sense of accomplishment in all areas of life
Burnout can also show in behavioral changes as well, such as withdrawing from responsibilities, isolating yourself, procrastinating, and turning to harmful vices more often. At work, you may slowly feel you have less and less control over your work. Although nothing has changed, you’re unclear about what to do next and you seem to gravitate towards repetitive work that’s monotonous or unchallenging.
So how does burnout start?
Causes of Burnout
Although most people think they can narrow things down to just one thing, burnout can actually be caused by any area in your life. At work, maybe you feel you haven’t been getting any recognition for the hours of hard work you put in. You work lots of overtime and don’t take much time out for yourself. In your day to day, if you don’t sleep enough or are taking on too many social or family responsibilities, you could experience burnout as well.
Sometimes, your personality could be a factor to your burnout as well. If you’re a perfectionist that feels like nothing you do is good enough or you really like to be in control, and are reluctant to delegate, it’s easier for you to burn out in any area of your life.
Luckily, burnout can be prevented (and fixed when it does happen).
How To Prevent Burnout
In Emily and Amelia Nagoski’s book, Burnout, they talk about a science-based method of preventing or reeling back your burnout called “Completing the Stress Cycle”.
“The good news is that stress is not the problem. It’s how we deal with stress—not what causes it—that releases the stress, completes the cycle, and ultimately, keeps us from burning out. You can’t control every external stressor that comes your way. The goal isn’t to live in a state of perpetual balance and peace and calm; the goal is to move through stress to calm, so that you’re ready for the next stressor, and to move from effort to rest and back again.”
When you burn out, the problem is you feel stuck. For example, if you’re stuck in awful traffic when you get home, you don’t actually instantly feel peaceful and relaxed. Your body is still stuck in the middle of your stress response. And even though you’ve left the traffic physically, your body still requires some method of “completing your stress cycle” before it can return to a static state.
Here are the 6 ways research has discovered that help to complete the cycle.
Physical Activity (dancing or jumping on the bed totally counts)
Creativity
Laughing (especially if you’re laughing WITH someone)
Crying (one of our body’s natural mechanisms to release stress)
Physical affection (even a long hug from a friend helps)
Deep breathing (breathe in slowly for 5 seconds, hold for 5 seconds, exhale for ten seconds)
If you’re interested in reading in detail, what exactly burnout entails and how you can improve your burnout cycle, check out Burnout: The Secret To Unlocking the Stress Cycle.
