I am seeing burnout in record levels in those around me and it is concerning. I feel like people are drowning from either COVID-19 fatigue or just life burn out. I am worried as an empath. I try to be supportive and if the individual is open to it I try to give some tips to help but ultimately... you have to take care of yourselves people. We live in a culture where we are seen as a failure if we slow down and take time for ourselves to recharge. It's looked like a luxury if you take a bath or sit and just read a book for the night. Our society really needs to change and I am determined to be a good example to those around me. I want them to see my life and be like "I can do that too I can take the time to recharge." I mean this brings up another thing people throw at me "but you don't have kids so you have plenty of time to do that."
I am going to be clear here. My journey is not yours and yours is not mine. We do not have to compare our struggles this is not a competition. We need to stop that attitude in our society and instead look over when someone else is struggling in their personal journey and help them up. Regardless if we think their struggles are not as bad as ours.
I also want to say this-- You have to put the work in. You have to make your self care a priority.
I will also share some things that work for me with burn out and how I get back to center.
- Put it on your actual schedule and make the time. Even if it is 5 minutes alone in the morning just drinking coffee and sitting.
- Find things that work for you. I enjoy the following you may not like any of these ideas but find what works for YOU. Mediation (Sanvello app and Peloton app), Walking outside, Working out, Reading a book, Making dinner, Talking to my husband, Watching bad reality TV or even taking a bath.
- If you are REALLY struggling right now in a moment don't suffer through it. If you can get up--- walk around-- play your favorite song-- do a quick 5 minute mediation-- go make that cup of tea-- self care can be real quick like that to just keep it together when you are burning out.
- When I am burning the candle at both ends and BURNINGOUT I will often have to set more firm boundaries. I will tell people "I am not in a place to be able to help you right now I need to focus on me." We need to be more willing in this society to set up personal boundaries to protect our own well being.
- Cancel some plans. It's alright you do not have to do everything. I think COVID-19 taught me that it is okay to say no to things.
- It's okay to not be okay. I love this saying. Some days are hard and that is fine. We cannot be expected to be happy and perfect all the time. When the days get hard sit in it and feel your way through it. Make sure you look for EAP resources or maybe do a virtual visit with a therapist if it is getting to be too much. I do that as needed myself. But please know you are allowed to have crappy days!
- Take a break from social media. I mean it. I have a week off in October and I most likely will be stepping away for at least a couple days to just live!
I hope I did not come off as a preacher here. I just want to help people around me because I am seeing people really struggling lately. Please take care of yourselves out there and reach out to me if you want more information on any of the self care things I do. I love sharing ideas.
Be safe!
-Emily
No comments:
Post a Comment