As you grow older, you’re gonna realize how much more often you hear the term “burnout”. This is basically a state of chronic stress and you might be going through this too if you feel too exhausted, detached, or see signs that you’re ineffective at work or with the daily tasks you need to do.
You’re probably familiar with this scenario. You are pretty good at your job – in fact, you might even be an overachiever. You work more hours than others and you enjoy what you do and even if people point out that you’re stressed, you tell them that it’s okay because it’s happy stress. Yeah, you probably have the “I can do everything” personality and because you’re like this, you either take on too much workload or are abused and given the workload you’re not supposed to do.
And then one day, it happens. There’s a drop in your productivity – you can’t do as much as you used to do; worse, you can’t even get yourself out of bed. My friend, this can actually be burnout. To help arrive at a conclusion better, here are the 10 burnout symptoms and how you can overcome them.
You’re Exhausted
This symptom has a pretty apparent physical manifestation. Some of us have a pretty healthy body but if one day you feel headaches out of nowhere or muscle weakness that you can’t even stand up, then that is physical exhaustion right there. This could also have mental manifestations like slowed reflexes and responses, moodiness, irritability and the like.
Solution: REST. It’s okay sleep. Not working for a day isn’t going to ruin your future. Email people, you need to email for adjustments in the deadline and tell them you’re gonna be gone for the day. Also, it’s okay to say no to people forcing you to do things when you’re exhausted.
You’re Feeling Useless
Because you’re not as productive as usual, it’s easy for you to arrive at the conclusion that you’re useless; even if in reality you’re still more productive than others.
Solution: ASSESS THE SITUATION. You’re not useless. You’re tired. It’s because you’ve been doing so much. It’s important for us to talk positively to ourselves because if we keep on looking at the negative, we’re going to end up with more burnout symptoms.
Depression Sets In
More and more people are getting aware of depression and how it looks like. It’s quite hard because people might have different manifestations of depression. If you feel that you have symptoms of depression that you need to get addressed, here’s what you need to do.
Solution: TALK TO A PROFESSIONAL. Even if it’s a pandemic, doctors and mental health practitioners are able to assess you via the internet. So don’t hesitate to schedule an online doctor’s appointment.
You Can’t Co-Exist With Others
You are easily irritated when you’re burned out so it’s normal for you to not want to be around others. Your social skills tend to drop because you just don’t have the energy to deal with others
Solution: BE ALONE. It’s okay to protect your energy and say no to social engagements at this time.
Low Concentration
No matter how much you try to follow a to-do list and tick off stuff from them, you still end up working slower because you can’t concentrate. Your mind often wanders when you’re too exhausted.
Solution: BREAK YOUR ROUTINE. Successful people and overachievers tend to stick to a routine and we end up hating ourselves if we can’t stick to them so might want to try something new today. Maybe work in a different location – this has proven to help with productivity.
Insomnia
It’s not like you’re binging on a Netflix series or watching your favorite Kpop idols. You’re literally staring into your ceiling and not feeling sleepy despite being tired from work. And then you end up sleeping at 5 AM and waking up to an alarm set at 6 AM and you’re even more exhausted than the day before.
Solution: MELATONIN has been proven as an effective supplement to induce sleep. If you’re iffy about this, you can practice yoga before you sleep or take a hot bath.
Stomach Aches and Headaches
As mentioned in the intro, there could be physical manifestations to your burnout symptoms and the most popular ones are headaches and stomach aches. You may even experience a change in bowel movement.
Solution: EAT HEALTHY. It can help a lot to focus on ingesting good food groups during this time because fast food and processed food will make you feel more sluggish.
Substance Abuse
It’s not a secret that people who experience burnout symptoms can turn to substances and spiral down from there. You know a lot of people who probably turn to cigarettes whenever they need a breather. Some of these people tend to smoke more sticks when they have burnout. For some people, it’s alcohol or worse, drugs.
Solution: BE AWARE. Mindfulness and mental strength are required if you want to avoid substances that can be harmful to your health. I’m not telling you to avoid cigarettes altogether. If one stick is going to make you feel better, then, by all means, go ahead. But don’t overdo it. Fight the urge to overdo it.
You Hate Your Job
Or you hate your boss or you hate your workmates. It’s easy to pinpoint where your exhaustion is coming from because you’re always at work and our jobs take up a big part of our lives. If you don’t control this well, you might end up impulsively resigning causing you to lose more than just your job but also the relationships you’ve built in that network.
Solution: GO ON LEAVE. If you feel like this is an environment that isn’t the best for you right now then talk to your supervisor so you can take a break from that environment because it can really help with your burnout symptoms.
You Overeat
Aren’t we all stress eaters or emotional eaters every now and then? Yes, we are. And sometimes, because we’re so exhausted and can’t even cook, we turn to fast food and you know the drill – fries, and coke make you sleepy. We gotta end this habit right away because you will keep on overeating if you don’t stop.
Solution: AVOID ENABLERS. There are people who are gonna join you on your binge. You want to avoid them right now.
Conclusion
And there you go. Hugs to whoever is going through this right now. If it gets too hard, there are many ways on how to deal with this just like talking to a professional or meditation.
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