Feeling the Burn(out?) Take a 3-Minute Mindset Reset Pause
If you didn’t get a chance to participate in the Take the Lead annual two-day conference at the Arizona Biltmore, I highly recommend watching the replay. This event exceeded expectations in providing inspiration, tools and action items for stepping into your most powerful potential. Yet lurking among the conversations spanning all aspects of Diversity and Inclusion, a new shared challenge emerged. In a word; burnout.
“If you didn’t get a chance to participate in the @Takeleadwomen annual #PowerUp conference, I highly recommend watching the replay. This event exceeded expectations in providing inspiration, tools and action items for stepping into your most powerful #potential. #careergrowth”
According to the experts at Help-Guide, burnout is a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion caused by excessive and prolonged stress. It occurs when you feel overwhelmed, emotionally drained, and unable to focus. As the stressful situation continues, you begin to lose the sense of purpose, or connection to your role or organization.
After almost three years of living through the uncertainty of a global pandemic, self-reported burnout is increasing, resulting in greater emotional fragility and spurring trends like “quiet quitting.”
“After almost three years of living through the uncertainty of a global pandemic, self-reported #burnout is increasing, resulting in greater emotional fragility and spurring trends like #quietquitting.”
According to a recent article in Self Magazine, “We’ve only begun to process everything that’s happening, says Erin Matthews, LCSW, a therapist based in Chicago who’s had many clients tell her that they’re struggling to motivate themselves. “The fatigue is real.”
While organizations struggle to regain some stability, Matthews adds “But your body is truly exhausted, and your mind hasn’t rested in two years.”
But if uncertainty is the new normal, after 2 years of time for adjustment why is it still so stressful?
It’s partially due to your biology
The state of uncertainty silently sounds the stress alarm, whether or not you recognize the resulting feelings as anxiety-driven.
“If uncertainty is the new normal, after two years of time for adjustment why is it still so stressful? It’s partially due to your biology. The state of uncertainty silently sounds the #stress alarm, whether or not you recognize the resulting feelings as anxiety-driven. #selfcare ”
In the words of the woman who launched TED Talks to fame, Jill Bolte Taylor, "We're feeling creatures who think, not thinking creatures who feel."
According to neuroscientist and author Lisa Feldman Barrett, "Uncertainty is more unpleasant and arousing than assured harm because if the future is a mystery, you can’t prepare for it.”
When life is uncertain, as it is now, it’s hard to sustain focused attention. Your autonomic nervous system steps in and helps you to prepare for the threat. Without even realizing it, you shift into defense mode as your cortisol levels, heart rate, and blood pressure rise, leading to a chronic state of high alertness (aka anxiety) or an emotional shutdown of exhaustion or avoidance.
Developing the muscle of attention
“According to neuroscientist and author @LFeldmanBarrett, “uncertainty is more unpleasant and arousing than assured harm because if the future is a mystery, you can’t prepare for it.” #burnout ”
The states of overwhelm, exhaustion and avoidance are associated with the inability to sustain focused attention. We’re constantly being pulled back into our mental list to-do list (overwhelm), chronic worry, despair, or regret.
When we can’t focus, we’re easily pulled in multiple directions, and it’s hard to stay on track with any one goal. As such, we’re always in short-term reactionary mode as we head further down the path to burnout.
Yet there is an antidote to the reactionary, short-term burnout cycle. One that lets us take a step out of the swirl of overwhelm and into the present moment, where we can reconnect to the big picture and respond in alignment with long-term goals. By building your ability to self-monitor and self-manage, you can learn to down regulate the stress response that leads us into reactionary mode.
“Yet there is an antidote to the reactionary, short-term #burnout cycle. By building your ability to self-monitor and self-manage, you can learn to down regulate the stress response that leads us into reactionary mode. #awareness #selfcare”
Put your biology to work for you
Our mind and body work together to keep you safe. That hard-drive is always running behind the scenes, even when we don’t notice it. So uncertainty silently sounds the stress alarm, whether or not you recognize the resulting feelings as inner stress. While it’s hard to quiet our minds when we’re stressed or overwhelmed, we can use breathwork to tap into the part of our automatic nervous system that slows down the stress response. Slower breathing, slower heart rate, and lower blood pressure all lead to a state of emotional reset.
“While it’s hard to quiet our minds when we’re stressed or overwhelmed, we can use #breathwork to tap into the part of our automatic nervous system that slows down the #stress response. Slower breathing, slower heart rate, and lower blood pressure all lead to a state of emotional reset.”
How does breathwork fit it?
“The kind of integrated daily practices that don’t take a lot of time can really provide a reset from the stress point of view. Once we intentionally say we are going to take a pause, it only takes 60-90 seconds to let the stress hormones settle, then you can get more clear-headed about what you need to do. If we don’t take that pause, we tend to rush right into it and before you know it, something else is causing you more and more stress.” – Dr. Chris Johnson, author The Power of Presence.
Elizabeth Borelli combines her years of experience in ICF-accredited executive and leadership coaching, and RYT® 200 training into a unique mind-body approach to personal growth and professional development. Her most recent book Breathe into Breakthrough, An Easy and Proven Process for Shifting Mindset, Overcoming Obstacles, and Achieving Your Goals centers around using neuroscience-based practices proven to support lasting change.