Recovering from Burnout

Recovering from burnout can feel very daunting. Here, we will cover the following 4 steps that can help you start your journey of recovery.

1) Recognize You Are Burnt Out

1) Emotional Exhaustion

Emotional exhaustion is a state of extreme emotional depletion (Perry). Spending all day working with others, during and outside of working hours can make a person feel emotionally drained and more burnt out

2) Physical Symptoms

Chronic stress can cause an increase in your body’s cortisol levels. This can lead to higher blood pressure, headaches, muscle weakness, and severe fatigue to name a few (Santos-Longhurst).

3) Lack of Motivation

The Effects of Burnout revealed that the brain regions most impacted by burnout are regions that are related to motivation. As a result, burnout can lead to a lack of motivation. It can even turn to the other extreme in cases of the “Sunday Scaries” where you not only do not feel motivated to work the following day, but you dread the idea of work (Miles).

4) Lower Productivity

Low productivity can present itself as an “uncharacteristic dip in work performance” likely due to the exhaustion and lack of motivation from burnout (Perry).

5) Low Self-Esteem

The exhaustion and low productivity linked with burnout can make previously rewarding activities no longer enjoyable, and, as a result, make people view their accomplishments negatively. If the burnout continues for a long period of time, this low self-esteem and self-doubt can lead to imposter syndrome, or doubting their abilities, often feeling like a “fraud” (Weir).

6) Loneliness or Detachment

A Harvard Study found that people who feel lonely are twice as likely to also report that they feel constantly exhausted (King). As such, burnout can cause or intensify feelings of loneliness and detachment.

2) Separate Yourself From The Stresser

Separating yourself from your source of stress is an essential step in recovering from burnout because it helps your body get out of survival mode. The high stress associated with burnout increases your cortisol levels and causes you to be in a constant state of fight or flight. Because your brain thinks you are in danger, it becomes harder for you to relax, leading to difficulty sleeping. As a result, to get yourself out of this survival state, it is important to first remove yourself from the stressful stimuli so that your cortisol levels can get back to normal levels.

When you rest, make sure that you are actually resting. Do not engage in any work during this time. Also, make sure to keep yourself away from your phone, as even seeing a notification can retrigger the stress responses and prolong the recovery process (Kwakyi).

Instead, take time to get some much needed sleep. Gabe Kwakyi, a trained coach specializing in Burnout & Quarter Life Crisis coaching, explained that getting rest is a “non-negotiable step” in the burnout recovery process. Try to get 7-9 hours of sleep or even more if you can so that your body can rest and get out of that survival state (Kwakyi).

3) Spend Time Doing Activities You Like

Engage in hobbies you have not been able to. Watch that movie you have wanted to watch but did not have the time. Meet up to chat with friends. It can be difficult at the start and you may feel like you are being unproductive by doing these things instead of working, but over time, you will “start looking forward to — and genuinely enjoying — that time” (Cleveland Clinic).

Establishing necessary boundaries are important to ensure you have the time to take part in these activities you enjoy. It might be difficult, but you must start setting boundaries at work, in relationships, and learn to say “no” (Cleveland Clinic). Establishing a work-life balance is difficult, and it has become even harder with the recent rise in people working from home where the lines between work and rest get easily blurred.

4) Make Long-Term Changes

Think about the circumstances that led to your burnout and consider what changes you can make to avoid such a situation in the future. Consider what brings you happiness and if you are able to get that. Do your priorities align with your values and goals? What is most important to you and why? (Cleveland Clinic)

Once you know this, consider what you can do to change your situation. These changes can be as big as leaving your current job or as small as taking one night out for yourself, but they must be “concrete changes” that help you meet your previously unmet needs (Cleveland Clinic). Also, be sure to carry out these changes. It is not always easy but, as Cleveland Clinic explains, “it is vital to the recovery process”.

Getting Professional Help

It can feel overwhelming to try and manage the recovery from burnout all by yourself. The first step is letting those close to you know what you are going through as they can help you in your responsibilities or make the necessary changes to give you time to relax. Alongside your support system, it can be beneficial to get a therapist to help you out along the way. Speaking to a professional help you identify the causes of your burnout and also help find the right treatment for you, whether that is through medication or a more structured approach like cognitive behavioral therapy (Cleveland Clinic).

Psychotherapist Natacha Duke explains, “There’s a belief in psychology that when you talk about your problems, you sort of cut them in half. One thing that we often need is to feel like we have space to be able to share, and that someone can validate that our situation is actually really difficult.”

Lastly, it is important to note that recovery takes time, ranging from a few months to years depending on the individual’s situation. Regardless of how long it takes, know that you and your health are worth the effort.

References

Bernier, Diane. “A Study of Coping: Successful Recovery from Severe Burnout and Other Reactions to Severe Work-Related Stress.” Work & Stress, 2023, www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02678379808256848.

King, Marissa King, and Emma Seppälä. “Burnout at Work Isn’t Just About Exhaustion. It’s Also about Loneliness.” Harvard Business Review, 27 Aug. 2021, hbr.org/2017/06/burnout-at-work-isnt-just-about-exhaustion-its-also-about-loneliness.

Kwakyi, Gabriel. “The Burnout Series, Part 2: Burnout Recovery” The Musing Mind, 23 Aug. 2022, www.gabekwakyi.com/essays/work-burnout-recovery.

Miles, Madeline. “Sunday Scaries: Symptoms, Causes, and 8 Ways to Cope.” Betterup.com, 2022, www.betterup.com/blog/sunday-scaries.

Perry, Elizabeth. “How to Recover from Burnout and Love Your Life Again.” Betterup.com, 2022, www.betterup.com/blog/how-to-recover-from-burnout.

Santos-Longhurst, Adrienne. “What Are the Symptoms and Causes of High Cortisol Levels?” Healthline, Healthline Media, 31 Aug. 2018, www.healthline.com/health/high-cortisol-symptoms#symptoms.

Weir, Kirsten. “Feel like a Fraud?” Https://Www.apa.org, 2013, www.apa.org/gradpsych/2013/11/fraud.

“12 Ways to Recover from Burnout.” Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland Clinic, 27 Nov. 2023, health.clevelandclinic.org/how-to-recover-from-burnout.

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