Four Ways To Bounce Back After Burnout

Burnout is a phenomenon that is becoming increasingly common in the workplace. Characterized by employees feeling mentally and physically exhausted, burnout in the workplace is on the rise, with 44% of respondents of a recent Gallup study feeling burned out. Burnout is extremely serious and is impacting individuals’ mental and physical health. There are a few societal factors that contribute to burnout including the 24-hour work-life, overloading, and the unreliable nature of jobs in the 21st century.

If you or someone you know has burned out at work, don’t give up hope – here are four ways to bounce back and thrive.

 

Define Your Values

 

Although workplace culture is responsible for a large percentage of workplace burnout, many individuals are unable to cope with the pressures of work due mostly to the standards they perceive they are being judged by. Many of us try to live to unobtainable standards, and it’s these internal standards that can cause us to over-work and stress in the workplace.

 

It is essential that you define a set of realistic intrinsic values that are personal to you. If you are working to the ideals and standards of others, your stress may become unbearable. It is essential that you put aside some time to think about your career and what actually matters to you: rather than operating in a manner you believe others want you to operate in, write down your personal goals and ambitions and develop your ideas from there. It is also worthwhile considering writing a journal, which has been shown to help in relieving stress and allowing you to see a situation with enhanced clarity.

 

Seek Support

 

The standard treatment for an individual suffering from burnout includes resting and therapeutic intervention. It may seem challenging to approach an individual in the workplace in regards to your burnout, but if this is the case then it could be worthwhile visiting your GP or local doctor for a diagnosis. Then, you can broach the subject with ease – and with the weight of a doctor’s note – in the workplace. The most common signs of burnout include:

 

  • Headaches
  • Stomach pain
  • Intestinal and digestive difficulties
  • A lack of energy
  • Reduced performance
  • Difficulty concentrating

 

It is important to remember that in addition to a hiatus from work, it is advised to seek therapy to help you manage work-based stress in the future. If this is not possible, consider a wise friend or family member who will be able to advise you in regards to your emotional state. It is important that you feel you can share your emotions with someone at this difficult time.

 

Try Out a Different Approach to Work

 

It is a common misconception that burning out due to workplace stress is a sign that you need to change your career dramatically. Many people burn out due to their hard work and dedication to a certain field – and their work is one of their principal passions in life. Burning out does, however, suggest that you need to change something in relation to your working habits.

 

Actually, some stress in a business can be controlled either by you or your managers. If you’re worried about what would happen if you were to make a mistake, it can be incredibly relieving to be told you have insurance to cover mistakes. There’s a host of options for business insurance by Next insurers to protect your company from accidents and legal difficulties — which in turn protects you from the negative effects of your mistake. This freedom can really help relieve that feeling of burn out, so be sure to get covered for piece of mind.

 

Allow Yourself To Heal

 

Many individuals who burn out are very eager to start working again as quickly as possible. Taking a complete break from work can be overwhelming, but it is necessary. It is important that you rest your body and mind for several weeks after burnout. This is why therapeutic intervention is essential, to help you work through issues you may not have known you had.

 

Taking time to heal will require you to reconnect with other parts of your life, like friends, family and hobbies. It is also now a good time to learn something new and allow yourself to focus on a leisure activity that is not associated with your past life or previous employment: now is the time to develop new habits to help you recover from burnout.

 

Burnout shouldn’t prevent you from enjoying a healthy relationship with work, on the contrary. It is simply a sign from your body that you are pushing yourself too hard in many respects and that you could incur serious damage if you continue working in the same manner. In the words of Banksy “Learn to rest, not to quit”.

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Written by HealthStatus Crew
Medical Writer & Editor

HealthStatus teams with authors from organizations to share interesting ideas, products and new health information to our readers.

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