Psychology Today: 6 Ways to Ease Yourself Back Into Work After Burnout

A major case of burnout can force us to change our work habits: cutting back our hours, being willing to say no, perhaps changing professions altogether.

Unless we’re independently wealthy, however, we still need to make a living. Moreover, humans don’t do well with extended idleness; we need worthwhile ways to direct our abilities and effort. How can we get back to work without burning out again?

1. Awareness is key.

The signs of impending burnout are usually obvious in hindsight, like having low energy and dreading work, but it’s easy to disregard them.

Practice listening inwardly. What is your body telling you? What is the state of your mind? Is your spirit expanding or contracting? The warning signs of too much stress are there when we open to them.

2. Recognize adrenaline-fueled energy.

It’s common to feel wired before a mental, physical, or emotional breakdown. The body can mount a temporary coping response that allows us to keep pushing through high levels of stress.

3. Beware of overcommitting.

Once we start feeling more energetic and less burned out, there’s an understandable desire to take on more work. Be careful about making hard-to-escape-from commitments that could easily overtax you.

4. Learn real-time stress management.

A common pattern leading up to burnout is incomplete recovery after weekends or vacations; rather than feeling rested and ready to work, we just want more time off. We need to learn to let go of stress in real time. Aim to find ease in activity.

5. Set rules that work for you …

Find what works for you. To start, be conservative about what is realistic to accomplish in a day, and guard against the strong tendency to do more than you’re ready for.

6. … and be willing to experiment.

At the same time, hold your rules lightly. Otherwise, they can become their own source of stress.

As you build back your strength and reserve, experiment with doing more if you want to. We might be capable of more—or less—than we imagine, and we’ll only know by trying.

If you do overextend yourself, watch out for hindsight bias (I should have known better!) and self-blame.

Burning out from pushing too hard can feel like a kind of self-betrayal, so it can be difficult to trust ourselves again. Continually foster a relationship with yourself, checking in to see how you’re doing and adjusting based on what you observe.

Read the full article here!

Reflection:

Have you had to deal with a burnout in the past? What helped you recover?

#BurnOut #Stress #Awareness #Relaxation #Mentalhealth