Burnout occurs when the
demands and stress placed on us exceed our physical and mental abilities to
deal with them. We cheat ourselves out of the rest we need because we assume we
can push past our breaking points. The bad news is, this is happening more frequently.
Forbes reports that since the
economic downturn, many employers have cut resources—though you probably didn’t
need anyone to tell you that. The reduction of resources, and stagnant pay, has
coincided with an increase in tasks and responsibilities. Employees feel an
intense obligation to never say no.
Prior to my burnout, I said
yes to everything. There was nothing I couldn’t do, nothing I wouldn’t do for
my job. If I’m being honest with myself, what it all came down to was me not
wanting to give anyone else the opportunity to say yes.
The point of no return
By the time I was willing to
admit to myself that I was burnt out, it was too late. I had withdrawn socially
and stopped being able to sleep. I found myself crying during the middle of the
day for no good reason at all. I just wanted to do better, to work as hard as I
thought everyone else around me was working. It was easier for me to tell
myself to work harder than it was for me to face the truth– that I needed a
break.
Everyone needs a break from
time-to-time. According to Scientific American, exposure to constant stress
releases the hormones epinephrine, nor epinephrine, and cortical within the
body. These hormones block your ability to properly process information—among a
host of other health issues they cause.
When I say break, I’m not
talking about a 15-minute stroll around the block. I’m talking about some
consecutive days off. The body takes a while to disconnect from the stress.
That can take anywhere from a few days to a full week. Your physical and mental
resources need time to regenerate. You didn’t lose them overnight, so you can’t
expect to gain them back overnight either.
Here are just some of the
health benefits to taking some time off:
Breaks you out of the cycle of
stress
Improves relationships
Able to gain new perspectives
Helps your heart and resets
your mind
For a variety of reasons, many
of us refuse to (or can’t) use our vacation time. So how do you cope with
burnout when you can’t stop working?
Getting real
This is the part that most of
us fail miserably at. We don’t check-in with ourselves enough because we think
we are too busy or too powerless to fix anything. Neither of those assumptions
are true.