METHODS THAT WORK FOR YOU

Recovering from burnout can be a process that involves several methods and takes lots of effort and patience. Every one of us is unique, so it is up to you to find the methods that help you the most on your way to recovery. However, I can help you create a frame strategy that brings you out of the impasse and helps you build a more balanced life. This requires some measure of self-discipline, and it is absolutely natural that sometimes we need help on our way towards recovery. A guiding hand, a listening ear, and an understanding heart. Until we are able to give all those for ourselves, cherish and understand ourselves enough to be able to cope with it alone. So, as for the part we might be able to do ourselves, here are some simple sounding, but for some of us possibly very challenging paths to follow.

A helpful strategy includes:

1. Prioritizing self-care: This can involve engaging in activities that bring you joy and relaxation, such as exercise, meditation, or hobbies. Find things that inspire you and follow your heart as much as you possibly can.
2. Maintaining a healthy work-life balance: Finding ways to separate work from personal time and prioritize leisure activities can help reduce stress and prevent burnout. If you have a difficulty with saying “no”, chances are that you have already crossed your inner boundaries without even noticing, and that may be going on for years, even since your childhood. As a preventive measure, you can try to say “no” more often than you’re used to, and give yourself time on a regular basis to check in with yourself and your needs before you commit to any new activity, task or responsibility.
3. Improving sleep habits: Getting adequate sleep can help improve mental and physical health and reduce the effects of stress. However, underlying trauma can be the cause of long term insomnia or sleep irregularities that can only be improved by deep trauma work.
4. Seeking support: Talking to friends, family, or a mental health professional can help provide a safe and supportive environment for managing stress and recovering from burnout. It is important to know that we don’t have to do it all alone, and there are not only people to help us, but there are certain steps of our emotional development, that we are only able to learn from other people, who already learned that kind of emotional intelligence from others. Our brains work this way, easy as that. If you couldn’t learn some things from your parents that would protect you, chances are that they had also no one to learn from, those things go on for generations very often. Seeing a psychotherapist for some time can change your life to its core. I’m not saying it’s the easy way, but it might be necessary to become healthier and happier human beings.
5. Reducing workload or finding new ways to manage stress: Making changes to your work environment or finding new stress-management techniques can help prevent burnout from recurring. Simple mindfulness or meditation techniques, like making a body scan or observing your breath on a regular basis, can do wonders. It all takes its time, as our minds need practice to adjust to the new reality, and they sure try to go back to the old known ways very often, even if that is not good for us. Minds do have this nature, they are afraid of the unknown. It takes some “convincing”(meaning: practising techniques of your choosing) to teach them new ways, and allow them to get used to it, until they consider it as “normal”. Besides, our bodies also need time for recovery, so cut yourself some slack there.
6. Taking time off: Taking a break from work and other stressful activities can help you recharge and come back stronger. Try new ways, that you haven’t done before. Go for walks in nature, or just go and sit at the seaside for a day and watch the waves, try painting, dancing, you name it! What we need, might be so different, so ultimately you’ll have to figure out yourself what works for you. I’ll definitely describe that methods that helped me, and where I might be able to help you with this. You can always ask a trusted friend what he or she thinks could work for you, but the important thing here is learning to rely on your own feelings and start to enjoy exploring yourself!

It’s important to remember that everyone’s experience with burnout is unique, and the process of recovery can take time. Finding the right combination of methods that work best for you can help you recover and prevent burnout in the future.

Next up are the tools that helped me the most, with some gems that I made for you from the bottom of my heart. Hope you enjoy it, and they help you on your way towards healing.