How to Tackle Burnout – 4 Simple Steps to Heal Yourself

I may earn money or products from the companies mentioned in this post. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases, at no extra cost to you.

You know the feeling when your brain is shutting down, you can’t focus, your thoughts are still running, your brain might be hurting, you don’t have energy, etc…? That, my friends, is burnout.

If you have reached the point of burnout, you can’t concentrate and find it extremely difficult to work.

Well, the funny thing is, I have burnout right now. Thankfully it isn’t a MAJOR one, so that I can even write this post.

Note: I am also taking a moment to appreciate myself for this! Appreciate yourself! If you don’t, no one else will!)

I came up with this article topic while I was trying to deep-breathe for 5 minutes to calm my brain down and refocus. Sadly, I only deep-breathed for 2 minutes because while breathing I was thinking about all the ways I can calm my brain down. And I decided I want to articulate this thought into an article. Afraid I will forget what I was thinking, I paused my timer and started writing.

Before I begin, I want to give you some backstory.

It is Wednesday. I post an article on Wednesdays.

My anxiety and my schedule is telling me I must post an article today. But I have nothing written, and my brain is burnt out. I didn’t realize it until an hour ago. It has been fuzzy, I haven’t been able to think straight for the past few days, and I can barely remember the last thought I had. There is only space for 1 sentence at a time in my head right now. So I lose my train of thought very quickly. Sorry, I need to rephrase: my train of thought is very short. That makes it extremely difficult to write, too. And that is why I am going on rabbit trail – because I can’t remember what I was actually saying. 

So for the last few days, my days have been flying by without me doing anything. I am kind of zoned out the whole day. And my brain hurts, even though I am doing nothing. It is like I have crammed in way too many facts before an exam and I can’t fit another ounce of information. But the strange thing is, the past few days I am not working at all, so there is no information being crammed! But my brain still hurts. 

And that means, I probably fed in too much stress and too many thoughts last week.

Pin it!

How to Get Past Burnout

Now, if you have ever been in a place like this, then here is what to do (and what I am going to do): 

1. Stop Working

Stop working when you reach burnout. Stupid of me to even write this article, because this is sort of like work. The good thing, however, is that this post is more like a journal post where I am barely proofreading and there is no planning involved. I am just writing exactly what I am feeling in the moment, so it makes it a ton easier and a lot less like work. I am refraining from other work at the moment. 

The reason you need to stop working is because when you reach burnout, your brain has clearly reached its saturation point. And if you keep working then all the junk will never drain out to make space in your brain. Think of your brain like a potted plant and a hose watering the plant with thoughts, work, and stress. The pot is overflowing with water! If you keep working, you are just filling it with more water, and it is never going to empty out. So switch off the house, so the plant (aka YOU) can absorb the water. 

2. Take Periodic Breaks

Keep taking breaks of dedicated self-care. This can mean a 5 minute break to breathe deeply, or 10 minutes to do a few yoga stretches. Sprinkling little self-care activities throughout your day can help relax your brain before it goes into overdrive mode.

3. Be Kind to Yourself

Today, of all days, it is critical to engage in self-love.

Don’t engage in negative self talk. It is easy to start saying things like “I am so weak” or “I can’t even handle a little bit of stress” or “Why can’t I just be as productive as others?”. You might tell yourself self-care is a waste of time, or meditating for 5 minutes won’t get your work done.

Just do yourself a favor and don’t think like that. Shut up and take care of yourself today (sorry if that was a little harsh). It is okay if you can’t get everything done.

4. Ideas to Relax

When you burnout (even before you reach that point), your brain needs to relax. Do a bit of yoga (just a few minutes). Deep breathe. Use a self-soothing technique, like placing an ice pack on your eyes or list out what all you can see. Listen to music. Close your eyes and do nothing. Go for a walk. Keep a journal near you and keep emptying your brain. Jot down whatever comes through. 

some of my favourite journals:

Preventive Measures

While this article is all about what to do if you have reached a point of burnout, try to avoid it altogether. Burnout is like injuring a muscle. When you exercise too much, you can tear a muscle, forcing you to take a longer break than planned. Sure, you can recover. But you would rather just not injure yourself in the first place, right? Recovery takes time and leaves you quite helpless. So, try to take breaks. Don’t overwork yourself. If you notice a few days where you are constantly stressed, be intentional about taking some time off. If you are feeling anxious, make it a point to exercise or meditate. If you can balance your life before you burnout, you will save a lot of trouble.

Conclusion:

If you can’t seem to think straight and are feeling anxious but exhausted and unable to do anything, you are probably burnt out. Stop, and do nothing. Or, like me, write what you are feeling (like this post :D). 

I am quite happy I killed two birds with one stone with this post. I am putting my thoughts on paper (or digital paper), while actually sort of doing the ‘work’ I wanted to. But, I am not making this post perfect (Cuz my brain does NOT have the bandwidth for that). But isn’t something better than nothing? So here is an imperfect, helpful, raw, honest post. Forgive me if you find mistakes and that there aren’t many beautiful pictures. It is what it is. 

Take care of yourselves <3

Don’t overwork. 

Don’t stress. 

You have time to do everything you want.

P.S. I think this article was the quickest one I have ever written! Interesting and ironic 😛 Maybe I don’t need to painstakingly plan everything I post.

---

Pin for later! 🙂