Written by: Lena Thompson, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
I experienced few burnouts even before I knew what it was, and looking back at it now, I can see the paths that led me there.
Burnout does not only cause us to feel drained and unable to cope, it can affect our lives on many different levels ‒ overwhelm, anxiety and being trapped in our current situations.
When I was in a 9-5 job, I had more than enough energy. I got up at the crack of dawn, squeeze in an 8-9 mile run, get kids ready for school, get on a train & tube and then repeat it all in the evening in reverse (apart from the run).
Although I was pretty shattered at end of the day, a glass or two of wine would usually give me the second wind which I needed to get through the bed & bath routines. Physically I was fine, but I was not engaging in life with joy. It felt like each day was a copy of the day before, and the only variable in my working day was the type of workout I chose to do each morning.
My burnout was not physical, it was an emotional state of mind that kept me from being my authentic self and living my full potential. Some of the predominant emotions I felt were loss of motivation, detachment and feeling trapped.
We often think that burnout is caused by working hard, but it is not completely true. Because when you love what you do, when you feel inspired and motivated, you are in the state of flow where you are immersed in the task, fully enjoying the process. Then it does not matter how hard your work and how long the ‘to do’ list is. The time does not exist, and it could be 5 minutes or 5 hours that gone by without you realising.
Burnout is an energy state, and when we try to be someone we are not, make knee jerk decisions, question our values, feeling powerless and trapped ‒ we experience a change in our energy state, which can cause burnout.
Many of us live in a constant state of resistance and control which takes an enormous amount of energy and inhibits our creativity. And the more we resist and control, the more energy we lose, the more drained we become and this affects the quality of our relationships, decisions we make and opportunities that we attract into our lives.
Some of the key areas that contribute to burnout are:
Misunderstanding our emotional energy and being overwhelmed by the emotions of others
Not using our energy correctly
Not trusting and valuing ourselves
Belief systems can also trigger negative emotional responses
One of the most common solutions to burnout is the need for rest, but, unless we heal our self-worth, understand how we are designed to our energy correctly, I.e our energetic profile, learn how to set personal and professional boundaries and redefine the meaning of work ‒resting will only provide a temporary solution.
The goal to healing burnout is not just to get up and go back to work and our lives, but to pause and contemplate as to what kind of life we want to create. Our own belief system, things that we believe about ourselves, health, relationships, etc. can either support our vitality or can rob us of energy and unless we change the way we think, feel and act, it will be very difficult to change our reality.
For me, burnout was a big pause button which gave me time to reset my mind, body and spirit. Had it not been for it, I may still have been living my life on autopilot, making unconscious decisions and taking care of routine tasks. It gave me an opportunity to step off the rollercoaster of my life and draw into myself to contemplate where I was out of alignment with my authenticity, empowerment, where I was still holding onto the past and how much energy I was burning trying to predict the unpredictable and unknown future.
There is no formula for creating a workable plan to heal from burnout as it does not happen overnight as it usually takes us years to get to that point. It takes time, patience and mindset shift to restore and replenish our bodies and craft a new set of meanings around work, energy and value.
These are some tips if you or anyone you know are recovering from burnout:
Tend to your thoughts, emotions and feelings.
Stop saying Yes to what feels like No
Stop Compromising and settling for less
Learn about your energetic profile and how to use your energy correctly
Lena Thompson, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Lena Thompson is an award-winning Social Media marketer, NLP coach, Reiki Master, Human Design & Leadership Coach with a degree in BSC Computer Science.
In 2018 Lena left her corporate career after 15 years to find purpose, fulfilment and greater alignment with her destiny.
She is now coaching corporate employees, entrepreneurs, leaders and teams helping them to discover their highest potentials and make powerful decisions in business and in life.
Lena has co-authored Amazing Women of Influence book, published in Thriving Women magazine, spoke at live events in London and appeared in many podcasts.
