Coping With Burnouts: A Guide For Women

I don’t know about you, but I have experienced burnout countless times. If you haven’t, I don’t feel like congratulating you, as recovering from a burnout can earn you skills and experience that are highly needed in this harsh world. We have created a society where we have to be everything, do everything, be part of everything, and be everywhere. This is especially true for us women, as we are expected to nurture and care for everyone else apart from ourselves, and all eyes are on us constantly in case we make a mistake.

So, what exactly is burnout? Each of us experiences burnouts differently and perhaps the same person may experience a different form of burnout each time. In general though, if you notice the following signs, then you should start worrying that you might be experiencing burnout:

• Feeling tired, drained or overwhelmed most of the time
• Losing interest or motivation in your work or other activities
• Having difficulty concentrating, remembering or making decisions
• Feeling irritable, frustrated or cynical
• Experiencing physical symptoms such as headaches, insomnia, muscle pain or lowered immunity
• Feeling detached, isolated or unsupported
• Having a negative or pessimistic outlook on yourself, your work or your future
• Letting go of yourself (including personal hygiene) for days

From the above, you can conclude that it might take some time to notice that you are going through a burnout. And once you notice, you need to act. This my coping mechanism for burnouts and in fact I am practicing it right now. If this is your situation, you might want to try my way this time. What do you have to lose anyway?

First of all, I focus on prevention. We have a proverb in Greece saying “a wise man’s child cooks before getting hungry”, meaning that being prepared is everything. I have acknowledged that I am a human being with vulnerabilities and I recognise that, since I have many interests, I will have many burnouts if I’m not careful. Therefore, I make sure that I rest regularly and well. Nobody, and nothing can steal my Sundays, regardless of how urgent it might be! This practice may be also called as making your welfare a priority. And believe me, if you don’t do it, nobody will do it for you, gal!

Once I realize that the burnout has hit, I don’t blindfold myself; it recognise it as it is and plan my counterattack! Honestly, I might be exhausted, stinky, unable to focus and unwilling to see anybody, but I know that the more I postpone recovery, the more complex the situation will become. So, I litterally choose a day when I will start fixing myself -and if it doesn’t happen that specific day, I don’t beat myself to death, I just reschedule, and, in fact, I might reschedule a few times before I actually start.

When the day comes, I wake up whenever I want (late enough that is), have a nutritious breakfast, brush my teeth, take care of my desperate face, make a myself a fancy coffee and turn on the boiler in the bathroom. While I wait for the water to be hot enough, I journal, turn on some music and start dancing to the tunes. Once I’ve started, my body craves for more and more exercise, so that’s what I do until it’s time for what I call “salvation shower”, where I give my body and scalp a good odd scrub (a few rounds of it, actually). I make sure the water is as hot as I can take for my muscles to relax and I massage my scalp with zeal to enhance blood circulation. After that, it’s time to comb my (very) tangled hair and hydrate my skin using natural oils.

By the time I’m done with this process, I am starving; so, I make sure I eat something tasty and nutritious. I prefer meals that I have made myself and stored in my fridge or, if I don’t feel anything like heating up a meal, I will order a fresh meal from a restaurant. In any case, I make sure that I use proper plates and silverware to eat my meal; it’s not about the food, it’s also about self-worth.

After I’m done with that, I spend the rest of the day staying hydrated and doing some inside work. I ask myself what has brought me to this state, what I can do about it now, and what part of the issue is beyond my control. You get the idea.

Nothing and nobody has the right to steal our peace and welfare, ladies! Remember that!