By: Angela Espinoza

The pressures of ‘doing’ and ‘being’ can be never ending. It seems as though there is no end to the rush of the world around us, and when the external world is chaotic, our internal worlds can also feel imbalanced. Burnout becomes a state of being that accumulates over time when negative experiences and negative emotions have persisted. The outcome of becoming burnt out can result from stress, anxiety, and emotional and physical overload from different aspects of our life such as our work life, our life at home with our family and/or partner, and commitments and responsibilities that are high demanding such as health issues. If we do not stop to acknowledge our burnout and overwhelm and address them adequately, some of us may reach a point where burnout becomes our baseline for functioning.

Burnout As It Simmers in the Body and Mind

Burnout can manifest itself in the body and the mind in multiple ways. When we have been in a state of frequent stimulation over an extended period of time, for months and even years, the body will eventually let us know that it can no longer show up for us in the ways that it has been. Our mental capacity will also be impacted by the constant overload that we have been exposed to. When burnout has become our state of being physically, some may feel lack of motivation to engage in forms of physical wellness such as exercise, feel as if they are dragging themselves just to get from point A to point B, find it difficult to perform to their best capacity when they are at work, have disengaged from hobbies and pastimes that they enjoy, and the list can continue. 

When burnout has become our state of being mentally, we may experience brain fog or not be able to think clearly and can be weighed down by rumination or chronic worry and over thinking. At the same time, we may not have the mental space to process experiences and emotions as we would like to and may become depleted of our mental capacity quickly. Over time, burnout will simmer into the body and the mind, and it will be no stranger as it will make itself known, especially when we do not attune to it in ways that allow us to effectively manage stress and overload.

Many of us might have experienced burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic, individually and as a collective. For parents, it might have not been easy balancing work life at home along with the confusion that this transition brought while at the same time keeping kids at home. Meshing work life and home life and trying to find a balance between the two was not an easy task for many families. Similarly, perhaps many of us witnessed the burnout experienced by health professionals during this time. With many hospital visits, stays, and an increasing amount of COVID-19 cases, health professionals experienced burnout from the physical demands of work and from the emotional and mental burden of witnessing people’s health get impacted.

Holding Space for Our Burnout

When burnout has become our baseline for functioning, some may experience grief, resentment, mental and emotional shut down, and/or yearning. We may experience grief because we understand that which is absent and take note of opportunities that we miss out on due to not having the capacity to find fulfillment in them. Resentment can be felt when our burnout stems from the energy that we poured into people and situations that perhaps exhausted us out of our capacity over a period of time. Additionally, some of us may reach a mental and emotional shut down when we no longer feel that ‘glow’ that so vibrantly spoke for our character. The ‘go-getter’ in us, the one who was the advocate and who embraced emotions and challenges with open arms is not recognizable. Consequently, we at times yearn for the person that we know ourselves to be without the weight of our burnout dragging us down. We yearn for missed opportunities, for connection and understanding, for a safe space to feel and let loose, and for some time to disconnect from the external.

Healing Burnout Gently & Authentically

The harsh truth about healing burnout is that it does not go away from one day to the next, in one week, or in months, even. There is no specific timeline for healing burnout. For our healing journey to begin, we must be willing to hold acceptance to the parts of our life where the burnout has stemmed. Finding acceptance in that perhaps we have lacked boundaries in the past, were learning and are continuing to learn about how to authentically express our needs, did more than what was sustainable to our mental and physical capacities, and got lost in societal and/or cultural beliefs about mental health and wellness. All of our stories are unique, and the reasons as to why we experience burnout can be diverse.

Here are some ideas that we want to share with you about ways to heal burnout and begin to live as your true and authentic self.

• Take part in your definition of self-care. Self care resonates differently to all people. For some, self care can look like taking a nature walk in the mornings, nourishing their body properly, and maintaining a steady sleep schedule. For others, self care can look like this, in addition to scheduling a meet up with their closest friends or family members whenever possible. Self-care can be physical and tangible, but it can also be verbal, mental, and emotional. It can look like placing a boundary with a certain person, saying no more often, crying more often, and embracing and validating ourselves more than we are used to. 
• Do different and be different. Sometimes, burnout stems from toxic and unhelpful cycles of coping and navigating life that we have learned and picked up from our environments and the people in these environments. Cycles of trauma can run in family systems and in other relationship dynamics. The aspects in one’s life that cause this trauma also contribute to the burnout that one develops. We can choose to stop and to disengage from these unhealthy patterns of living.
• Tap in to your inner child. Thinking about and considering our inner child is at times just what we need. Sometimes, our inner child asks us to acknowledge and accept our feelings and emotions just as they are, to laugh a little more and to rest some more, to let go of the pressures of productivity or the burden of people-pleasing and to just let loose, or to advocate for what we have left ignored or unattended.

Burnout is no stranger to our culture today. We understand the challenge that is healing burnout, especially when it has become the baseline for functioning. Throughout our healing journeys, we can choose to embrace all the parts, even the challenging ones that come along the way. Although not easy, it can be manageable and doable. There is no need to worry or to rush into the process. True healing will come in time, and slowly, we can be on our way to living without the weight of burnout. <3

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Begin Therapy in Austin, TX!

Looking to learn more about how to better understand burnout? Safe Space Healing Collective can help! We provide mental health counseling, as well as other mental health services. To begin counseling in Austin, TX follow these three steps:

• Contact our office to set up an appointment or to learn more information.
• Meet with one of our knowledgeable therapists.
• Start feeling more seen, heard, and understood!

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Here at Safe Space Healing Collective, we offer counseling services for people of all ages in areas including Complex PTSD, PTSD, Attachment Trauma, Somatic Trauma Work, LGBTQIA+ Mental Health, Identity Exploration, Dissociation, Women’s Issues, Adolescent Issues, Anxiety, Depression, Troubled Childhood, Exploring Sexuality & Gender Expression, Blended Families, Healthy Communication & Conflict Resolution, Relationship Issues, Personal Growth, Life Transitions, Grief & Loss, Family Estrangement, Death & Dying, Career Transitions, Problems at Work & School, Interrupted Sleep/Insomnia. Our therapists strive to post blogs regularly. We provide helpful information on a variety of mental health topics. To learn more about our therapists and our counseling services, please reach out to the Healing Collective today!