The Fastest Way to Recover from Burnout

This video series is an educational project sponsored by Google.
Aside from making time for exercise, eating a proper diet, and getting enough sleep each night, there are other things we need to consider and incorporate into our life to help us recover from burnout. Some things to consider are how long of a break or vacation we need to take to give our brain time to heal? Have you ever come back from a vacation and felt totally rested? Or maybe you come back just as stressed out. Think about this for a bit, and also consider the type of break you need. Maybe you need to sit around and do nothing for 7 days, or maybe you like to get outside and hike or bike, or perhaps you prefer to see the world and experience different cultures. Take some time to consider what types of breaks you need and how often you need them.

I'm Kati Morton, a licensed therapist making Mental Health videos!
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[sl]

I've been burnt out for so long that I feel like I want a break for the rest of my life tbh

Edit 3 years later: found out at 32 I have adhd and this comment that still gets attention all this time later (so it keeps popping up for me) makes a lot more sense.

[Ferenc-Racz]

"Burnout is caused when the reward for what we do isn't with the amount of effort or work we have to put it." - Kati Morton. Thank you for this eye opening sentence!

[rmc]

Reasons for me:
- Fulltime work and only 2 days free
- The biggest part of my paycheck goes into surviving and being able to show up at work
- No money for the hobby I want
- Not fitting in at work
- Lots of family problems
- No appreciation at work, money as the only reward doesn't help me
- 'Pretending' at work, emotional labor
- Lack of perspective for the future in these times we're living in

[ysmbhom]

All the crap in 2020 has just broken my emotions I just... feel dry of everything

[lindabohannon]

Wow I just realized I really don't get any breaks. I'm always multi tasking. Even when I eat meals. My brain is thinking of what's next. Really makes sense.. Sometimes we have to hear how important a little thing is really a big thing we need to appreciate. Thank you once again

[katelynnabernathy]

As a student, summer is incredibly important and is a great time to heal from burn out. Personally, swimming, painting, and sleeping helps alot. Taking a break is definitely important after an entire semester of sleep deprivation lol

[Priestessofharmony]

I’ve found that sometimes it’s not that I’m burnt out but it’s that I need the right activities and human connection to engage me. One conversation with someone can take me from feeling like dying and just going to bed to then wanting to run and jump around like a child. Moving through burnout took a lot of clearing of emotions like despair and apathy.

[nicetightsizejeans]

I'm too poor to afford vacation and too poor to miss work. It's a privilege to be able to just recover from burnout

[marionoschelmuller]

Perfect break: Turn off phone. Go into the forest, meditate a bit, enjoy the fresh air and nature, listen to a bit of music, take a nice bath, go to bed early.
To me, you know, yes breaks are an important part of burn out recovery, but I wouldn't overestimate the (long term) impact, because what made you not care for yourself in the first place? What makes you feel like you are not validated in ypur relationships or at work? Becaue your partner and colleagues are arseholes or maybe because you were abused as a child and neglected and told yourself you weren't worthy and nobody liked you because you were bad in order to survive? Or what sucks your energy really? Is it that your work consumes so much energy or that maybe you have some trauma that holds your life energy back. And you know, what I consider really important is this: Don't expect different outcomes if you put in the same things over and over again. So even if you have taken a break, I'm sorry but it's not gonna be enough, you are going to find yourself struggling again if you don't go to the roots of the problems and make a bigger change. (But at first taking a break is also important.)

[BallinBunBun]

Take a break every 45 minutes? I wish, my boss would fire me.

[jackielaidler]

I began suffering burnout 8 months ago but carried on working under extreme pressure.
I was suffering physically (high blood pressure, etc) as well as mentally (exhaustion, etc).
I used ALL the techniques Kati described.
It kept me at work, but the extreme pressure had not been addressed by my bosses.
Eventually, the flood gates burst 3 months ago and I was broken.
6 weeks later I went back to work not appreciating how deep my “injury” was.
4 weeks after that I crashed again.
Finally, I realised that recovery is more than just simply “take a break”.
I cannot “race” back to work.... I am having therapy and am learning to take one day at a time and be patient.
I cannot RUSH my recovery.

[jrg]

Ideas:
1) exercise maybe 4-5 days a week with resistance some but mostly aerobic
2) prioritize eating regular healthy meals for calorie needs
3) prioritize working with a therapist weekly
4) spoil yourself doing something fun
5) pursue your actual passions in free time or professionally
6) mix up your life routine from time to time or make it consistent if you're too mixed up
7) laugh. Find shit to laugh at. They should offer tickle services or absurdity services. I'm sure whatever is released here is antiburnout chemically.
8) find emotionally filling relationships, not draining ones.

As someone who doesn't have the luxury of vacation time or sick days, these things keep me going.

[tinythingy]

My issue is feeling guilty about taking time off, so the break does not actually feel like a break but like a failure.

[dysprosium]

Sad thing is I don't even know what recharges me or gives me joy.

[annasicard]

I have designated Sundays as my lazy day. I do whatever I feel like doing... If I feel like doing nothing, I stay at home and read a good book or binge watch my favorite show. If I feel like going out, I go and have lunch at my favorite restaurant. It is whatever I feel like doing when I wake up! It definitely places me in a great mind set the rest of the week.

[fembot]

How I am keeping burn out at bay:
Schedule time off every so often
Plan vacation time
Saying NO when needed
Vacation destinations that are all inclusive so I get a break from the mundane every day tasks and have an opportunity to be bored and relaxed.
Listen to relaxing music
Making time for my hobby and ignoring the guilt.

[mattgeisel]

I burnt out extremely bad several years ago and I have been slowly realizing that I never fully recovered and have been pushing through a consistent state of burnout since then. I am with s I, I feel like I need to take the next year or 2 off at a minimum. Small breaks dont work, week breaks dont work, I think I am just too far gone and need to stop for a long time.

[Zbittersweetz]

First. Time i dealt with burnout, i was, 17-18. Was working two jobs. Home stuff jot going well. I eventually took a few weeks off and just watched tv. Did nothing.

[PokemonFreaaakkk]

i feel so lost & tired and sick. i wake up tired and i find myself struggling to even take care of myself. ive had major depressive disorder for most of my 21yrs and i really spiraled out when i was 16 & was hospitalized. nothing makes the fatigue truly go away>> even while i was on medicine. i have to live a ridiculous high maintenance life style (working out 6 days a week, taking care of my basic needs, eating extremely well, remaining sober, praying/meditating) just to feel somewhat near happy and tht within itself usually only sticks for a bout a month at a time before i spiral out again & double back the time i'll remain in a depressive episode. i feel like there's no win-win. i dont feel suicidal or sad anymore but i find myself wanting to kill myself more than ever now than before just to escape the awful cycle and feeling so exhausted and burnt out all the time. i feel like a caricature of who i knew myself to be, i feel stupid and literally have cognitively declined to the point i can hardly remember things or even faces. im so sick of living and feeling like this but i have no idea where to turn or how to actually help myself. im so low-functioning and codependent compared to the
self-sufficient self i used to be as a teenager before i tried killing myself and crashing like i did at 16. i want to be normal it hurts me that i havent been able to escape all of this. im weak but im still trying to choose to live. ig im just venting or looking for some guidance/tips.

[nasedyanka]

I think it's also important to note that sometimes what we like as a hobby may not necessarily count as rest and self-care. For example, I may love sewing, knitting, crafting but that may also feel like a project. And if so, it's not self-care. The rest in the self-care must feel restful, more like play and do nothing, to reset.

Thank you for your videos. I too work in the mental health profession and relate, and I like and appreciate what you do.