RECOGNISING THE SIGNS OF BURNOUT.
Burnout is real and can cause tremendous physically, emotionally and mentally pain and the road back is long and bumpy. There are obvious signs and not so obvious signs a person might be on your way to burnout.
Below is a list of some common and not so common signs of burnout to help you recognise the signs.
** If you are a High Achiever and an Empath I encourage you to especially have look at the list below, it may help you (and your clients) steer away from the edge and avoid a long road through recovery.
CLUES YOU MIGHT BE ON YOUR WAY TO BURNING OUT:
1: You are often exhausted, stressed or feel like you are running on empty.
You feel tired all the time and sleep doesn’t seam to help. You might meditate, eat well, take your vitamins and exercise but your body is still exhausted.
2: Your mind feels foggy.
You find it hard to think straight and often feel like you live in an altered reality or in a dream. You might be worried that you will loose you train of thought in a conversation or make yourself look stupid if you forget things.
3: You have a short fuse and get angry or emotional easily
You snap easily. You cannot handle any surprises and stressful events. Small minor issues all of a sudden feels like massive problems.
4: No matter what people tell you, you still feel like a failure .
You find it hard to absorb any praise. You know you could have done/ should have done better/more. Out of 100 positives you will remember the 1 negative and dwell on it for days.
5: You are a people pleaser.
You always want to help and make people feel good. A beautiful trait indeed, however it can give you the illusion you have the power (and responsibility) to fix people and make sure they are happy. This mindset and subconscious belief is a tough nut to crack as society rewards altruistic personalities.
6: You often wonder ‘is this all there is?’
So you aimed and you scored, well done! But wait, you still feel empty and confused on the inside. So what’s going on? Success guilt and shame is real and it can cause great confusion, emotional pain and yes, burnout.
7: You have unresolved trauma in you past you don’t know what to do with.
Around 75% of high achievers have suffered some form on trauma in their lives, often unresolved and covert up by achievements and trophies. You might have been to a counsellor or psychologist to try and resolve this issue before but have found just talking about your past isn’t working for you. This may cause you to feel misunderstood and lonely, all ingredients of burnout.
8: Your perfectionism has turned into a bit of a problem.
You hate showing your ‘bad’ sides and DO NOT like being seen as messy let alone lazy! This causes you to feel drained, tired and may leave you to procrastinate on important tasks, all of which in turn makes you feel even worse.
9: You are afraid of failing.
Fear of failure (FOF) is part of life but when it’s stopping you from taking action or following your passions it can become a problem. FOF can cause procrastination and an inability to make decisions with certainty.
10: Your are results driven and terrified of being an underachiever.
Let’s face it. You are in it to win it, otherwise play at all?? Second best is never enough. But this winning mentality can cause you to go the opposite direction and become an underachiever, a high achievers worst nightmare!
11: You have problems with self-loathing.
You often feel like you are not enough. You may even suffer from depressive or anxious thoughts and worry about yours or others future. All signs you might be on a slippery slope towards that famous wall.
Look after yourself in these unprecedented times. Know that you are enough and remind everyone around you that they are too.
♥️ Madelaine
Feel free to download this cheatsheet for future reference.