Burnout can be identified in people who have symptoms of exhaustion, feeling they’re “barely making it”, or have a lack of enjoyment in actives that typically have brought pleasure. Some people experience this when they’re going through a particularly difficult time in life and have less emotional energy to give to their responsibilities, or maybe they’re in a midlife time period and feel that they’re tired of the same old grind.
You may have heard that in order to cope with burnout, you need to quit activities or make huge career changes to combat it, but have you ever heard of adding things to your life to combat burnout? In my own life and with clients, I have seen over and over again, that when individuals are tired out in one area of their life, that it often helps to add new or restorative activities to their life. Instead of a drastic career change because an individual may be tired of their teaching job, maybe they want to add a yoga class to their weekly schedule, or a night out with friends to help add peace and joy back into their lives.
So if you are a person dealing with what you think may be burnout, ask yourself these questions:
1. What part of my life is draining my energy?
2. Is that part of my life changeable?
3. If not, what can I add to my life in terms of restorative activities?
In order to identify what is restorative in your life, you may want to consider pondering:
What have I enjoyed in the past?
What have I always wished I could do but never made time for?
If this is difficult to identify, it may be helpful to ask loved ones, what have they seen that I have enjoyed in the past?
Another huge resource can be spiritual activity or involvement. If spiritual activities have not been a part of your life, you maybe want to consider adding them, because there is evidence that people with religion in their lives have more hope than the average person.
If you’re having some of these feelings and are trying to assess whether or not you maybe be dealing with burnout, it might be wise to talk to your therapist or loved ones about how to manage this time in life.
Psalms 51:12 “He restores my soul. He lead me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.”
