SEVEN STEPS TO STOP BURNOUT SUCCESSFULLY
by: Remie Longbrake | published: July 18, 2022
Too many of us live in stress day to day. According to the Cleveland Clinic, stress is a normal human reaction that occurs when our body experiences an increase in mental and physical challenges.
The World Health Organization states that burnout is a syndrome that appears as a result of stress caused by work that has not been successfully dealt with. As a consequence, there is an energy depletion and a noticeable decrease in efficiency in our work and personal affairs. This depletion can ultimately lead to tiredness, anxiety, depression, feelings of burnout and others when stress is not successfully treated.
What happens during stress
Our body’s nervous system controls our heart rate, breathing rhythm, vision, and more. A chemical in our body called cortisol is the primary stress hormone. This hormone increases glucose (sugars) in our bloodstream and also produces the “Fight or Flight” response. The response in our body includes physical, emotional and behavioral characteristics and produce the following,
- Aches and pains
- Chest pains (heart racing)
- Exhaustion
- Dizziness/shaking
- High blood pressure
- Muscle tension
- Panic attacks
- Depression
- Sadness
How stress is diagnosed
Stress can be elucivise to overcome. Reality is everybody has stress, however, it is the traits that stress causes that we can see and treat appropriately. A large portion of stress is emotional so we need to be in tune with our body. Stress symptoms can be diagnosed by a healthcare provider using a series of questions to understand who stress is impacting qualify of life.
What is burnout
Burnout, according to the Cleveland Clinic, is defined as physical, emotional, or mental exhaustion. Fatigue, dissatisfaction is work, activities, and life in general is a major sign of burnout. Changes in diet and sleep patterns is another sign of possible burnout. Stress is typically a root cause that can lead to burnout, so it’s important to evaluate your stress and plan accordingly.
To help reduce the effects of burnout, here are seven steps you can do. However, it is important to ALWAYS seek professional help if you feel down, troubled or highly stressed.
1. Relax
Take adequate time to relax. Chill out. Do things you like to do. If able get out of the office for a bit, go on a walk, even if around the parking lot. Try to get outside if possible. Breath. Call a friend and chat. Long-term solutions can be an adjustment in your day or your work. You’ve got this far with stress for a reason, so now it’s a matter of progressing to find solutions to help relax.
2. Develop a response plan
If you are experiencing symptoms, this is a sign you need to care for yourself better. You need to take more regular breaks for one. This include at work and personal life as needed. Set boundaries for one and understand changes in lifestyle may be needed and a better response for stress is due. Techniques to respond to stress can include,
- Breathing exercises
- Visualization
- Meditation
- Stretching the body
- Take a cold shower
- Exercise, including walks
- Call a friend/family
- Color/write
- Get good sleep
- Eat better
What you can also do is understand your body better. Listen more, your body will tell you when you are tired, stress, irritable and not happy. You can also consider taking proactive steps and trying different techniques to see which work better for you.
3. Re-evaluate your goals and habits
Long term solutions to mitigating stress and burnout is a change in lifestyle. It’s common to over work, especially during Covid, when we were forced at home. Now we carry work to our home and it’s hard to really get away fully. It could be changing morning routines or adding better, healthier habits to your day.
- Take a vacation
- Exercise regularly
- Remove email from phone
- Reduce tv and computer time
- Stop alcohol and tobacco use
- Reduce or eliminate caffeine
- Adjust your sleep schedule
- Re-evaluate your goals
- Talk with the boss
- Talk with your spouse or significant other
- Talk with a therapist/counselor/pastor
- Talk with family and friends
- Take on hobbies
- Reduce work load
- Get a dog or cat
4. Delegate
Delegation is a powerful tool we can use to help combat stress and avoid burnout. Truth is burnout is by taking on too much, so untimely we need to learn better to cope but also to delegate tasks that stress and may not be related to your specific skillset or character. Is it very easy to just do, do, do and not push back some and let your feelings be heard in a healthy way. Speaking up could cause hard feeling, and the boss and co-workers may not like it, but if your at the point of burnout something needs to be said, otherwise things will not improve and emotions can further stress to the point of depression.
This goes for family life too. We may commonly connect burnout to our jobs, but lets not kid ourselves home life can be stressful too. Family, kids, money, time, these can all be stress points so you need to bring up feelings to your family.
5. Find fun hobbies
Get outside! There is not much any better then being in nature. What you do is up to you, but get a hobby and don’t work so much. Hobbies can include,
- Walking/running
- Biking
- Sports
- Fishing
- Artistry
- Reading/writing
- Blogging
- TV/Movies
- Gardening
- Cooking
- Yoga/meditation
- Card/board games
- Group activities
- Volunteer
- Church
Whichever you do, try different things, because you never know you may like new things and meet new people. Don’t be afraid to get out of your comfort zone and seek others to be around.
6. Ask for help
There is nothing wrong asking for help. In fact asking for help is a great step and a must for anyone experiencing signs of burnout. Please talk with someone, hopefully that includes your family, but essentially should also include professional help when symptoms are prolonged and/or severe. There are many resources to help, starting with your physician. Councilors who provide therapy can also be a great resource. Do not ever think help is not available.
7. Ask God
God is powerful and all-knowing. We cannot blame God for our problems. Burnout is a reaction, therefore this could very well be a sign that some changes need to be made. Perhaps your way of doing things isn’t working the best that they can or should. No matter who you pray to, you can pray for guidance, healing, and hope that stress will be reduced and you can successfully transition to what needs to be done.
In closing
Burnout is real. There are steps you can do to avoid going overboard and getting assistance.
Please note that if you are ever feeling down, feeling hopeless and highly stressed, I highly encourage you call 1-800-273-8255 or text 741741, day or night. These are professionals who can offer immediate assistance in your time of need. And for those who see negative changes in attitude, emotions, and daily functions please say something to those who may be experiencing signs of stress and burnout.
Note: This article is for educational purposes and is not meant as a substitute for professional advise or treatment.