Burnout manifests differently in everyone and is as of now officially not a DSM-5 diagnosis. (DSM stands for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and could be described as the bible for psychotherapists which they use to diagnose mental illnesses in patients.) However that doesn’t mean that burnout isn’t real. It felt very real for me and my symptoms included panic attacks, anxiety, intense feelings of constant stress, insomnia, exhaustion and depression. On top of that I also had physical symptoms like regular headaches and dizziness. In my opinion we also don’t always need a diagnosis, you will feel it when you have it.

Looking back, there were some confronting truths about burnout which I have come to realize that even though they were painful at the time, were so true. Even though I didn’t want to hear them at the time it was still good to be aware of them. I’d like to share these with you in this article. I could have saved myself some time and pain if I had accepted some of these sooner. Of course, everyone is on their own path and timeline but I hope these recommendations will help you deal with your situation in a more efficient way.

Accept your condition

Accepting that you need a break and can’t work and live at the pace you did before is a critical step in your healing journey from burnout. I have been denying my symptoms for the longest time, which eventually made everything worse and only postponed the fact that I had to deal with my bad mental health condition.

Therefore my first advice is to accept what you’re experiencing and try to stay in the present moment.

When I got to the point where I could no longer deny it, it felt like my world was breaking apart. I didn’t want to believe that this had happened to me and was in huge denial. Thinking about the future scared me. Similarly, I was beating myself up about why I hadn’t taken better care of myself in the past. I was stuck in ‘what-ifs’ thinking. But there is absolutely nothing to gain from that. Therefore, try to stay in the present moment as much as you can and take it one day at a time.

And speaking of acceptance – it is also a good idea to accept that you won’t recover from burnout from one day to the next. A short holiday is likely not going to fix it. Just like your symptoms have probably built up over some time, your body and mind will need some time to recover.

Take a break from work

And by taking a break I mean either taking a sick leave or quitting or at minimum taking a big annual leave. This might seem obvious but it is (next to acceptance) the hardest part of burnout for many and it certainly was for me. Most of us are stuck in their ‘I can hold on for a little longer’ – thinking, until they can’t and completely break down. I believe it is so hard to take a break because it would mean admitting that you aren’t well and can’t go on the same way. And that in return would mean change and uncertainty, which can both be very scary concepts.

Personally it has taken me months to admit that t I was burned out and I only took a break because my body forced me to. Eventually the physical symptoms of anxiety and insomnia got so strong that that there was no way around it. I kept continuing to ignore my symptoms and every day that I kept pushing through made my condition worse. Not to say that the longer you hold on even though you’re exhausted, the longer your recovery process will take. And in my experience recovery only starts once you give yourself a true break, once you get some distance from your situation. Therefore my advice is: please take that break sooner than later and don’t ignore your symptoms!

The best tip I can give here is, try to or learn how to listen to your body. Common symptoms of burnout like fatigue, insomnia, panic attacks, concentration problems, headaches, depression (and the list goes on) don’t just appear out of nowhere. It’s your body trying to tell you to take a break and to take better care of yourself! A good way to tuning into yourself is for example meditation or journaling.

If you do feel like you need a break but don’t know where to start a good first step would be to speak to your GP and/or the HR representative of your company.

Learn how to do nothing

If you feel burned out it is possible that you are someone who always has to do stuff in order to feel productive, which is why taking a proper break can induce fear. You might have learned as a child that you are only worthy when you are productive. However, please let me tell you that rest right now is the most productive activity that you can engage in. Up until now, work has probably also taken a big part of your time and possibly a lot of importance in your life. Therefore it will certainly feel uncomfortable and unknown to do ‘nothing’ at first. However over time you will get more and more used to it and eventually you will hopefully learn to enjoy it and fill your life with recharging activities.

If feeling unworthy when you’re not productive resonates with you, I recommend using affirmations to challenge this belief, for example “I am worthy independent of my achievements.” You could also write it on a piece of paper and pin it on your mirror / fridge / wherever you see it often.

If you ended up in burnout, chances are that you haven’t been tuning in with yourself but maybe used work to push your emotions and inner voice away?

One of the scary yet eventually positive things about coming to stillness is that there will be less distraction from your thoughts. It will force you to listen to your inner voice which you might have ignored for a while already. It’s very possible that it will tell you things that are uncomfortable. In my case working so much was a welcomed distraction from thinking about whether this was the life I wanted to live, and whether I was happy (which I wasn’t). This is an extreme example because I changed my life completely afterwards. Nevertheless, you will probably gain some valuable insights about yourself and how you’d like your (working)life to look like.

Instead of drowning yourself with work, your full-time job will now be to take care of yourself 24/7. However, you’ll be doing everything in the most relaxed way possible. This can include cooking a nice meal for yourself, going for a walk, getting a massage, and spending quality time with loved ones.

Understand that the burnout is telling you something

It is very likely that you didn’t just get a burnout because life wants to punish you. Instead it is very possible that something in your life isn’t in sync. It is for sure trying to tell you that you took on more than you can handle and that you need a break. Maybe it’s also telling you that you need to work on setting better boundaries. Maybe that you never learned that it’s okay to take a break, that things don’t need to be perfect and that you’re worthy without being productive. Whatever it is for you, this condition is teaching you something (the hard way, I know).

Once you’ve gotten some distance from work, you’ll start to see clearer.

Therefore, the best thing you can do now is to listen to yourself, your body and try to seek out the learnings from this situation (I promise there are some). As painful and frustrating as it is, try to see the positive in it and trust that it will bring you positive long-term changes. I recommend seeking out resources from people who have went through a burnout. Many of them report how their lives changed for the better as a result of it.

I know that it doesn’t feel like this now but one day you will understand why this had to happen to you because you’ll come out of it stronger and better. But the truth is, in order to get there, you’ll need to take a break, get some distance and listen to yourself.

Final Thoughts

I can imagine that the words in this article might meet a lot of resistance, they certainly have for me. But I do think that everyone with burnout needs to hear them. Try to see your burnout as an opportunity to transform your life. This will require a lot of courage but it will certainly pay off!