I realized I\u2019d lost my hope the day I recognized I got it back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Totally innocuous moment \u2013 driving along, thinking of nothing important \u2013 when I sat up a little taller\u2026and immediately slouched back down. Waves of emotion were rolling over me, from pride and relief, to fear and disappointment. I mean, I\u2019m a reasonably self-aware person\u2026how did I not recognize I\u2019d lost my hope for the future?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
To this point, I\u2019d been basically functioning. Going to work, cooking (most!) meals, putting on pants, but it was this moment that I\u2019d recognized that I was just going through the motions \u2013 that I\u2019d stopped reaching for my goals, that I\u2019d stopped really caring about my career and went from thriving to merely surviving. I was burnt out and hitting the proverbial bottom was the moment I\u2019d realized it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Burnout is a hot topic right now with 77% of survey respondents in a recent Deloitte marketplace survey saying they\u2019ve experienced burnout at their current job, with more than half citing more than one occurrence. More than prolonged stress, burnout is characterized by moving from feeling like it\u2019s all too much<\/em> \u2013 too much work to do, too many expectations, too many deadlines \u2013 through to feeling like you don\u2019t have enough<\/em> \u2013 time, energy, motivation \u2013 to get it all done and by now you don\u2019t even care.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When you feel like you don\u2019t have any more cares to give, that\u2019s a good sign you\u2019ve crossed from simply stressed out into burnout.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In a recent episode of her Unlocking Us<\/a> podcast, Brene Brown interviews Drs. Emily and Amelia Nagoski, authors of a new book called Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle<\/strong>.<\/a> A truly informative, entertaining and fascinating episode, they introduced me to a concept I wasn\u2019t aware of before \u2013 the Stress Cycle. You can think about it like this \u2013 stressors<\/em> in life cause you stress<\/em> and once you\u2019re feeling stressed, you do something to feel less stressed which closes the Stress Cycle. Just removing the stressor<\/em> isn\u2019t enough \u2013 when you finish that big project or pay off that debt or even break out of your bad relationship \u2013 unless you complete the Stress Cycle by doing something to actually reduce the feelings of stress in your life, you won\u2019t feel less stressed. Stress is a chemical reaction in your body and you need to actually take action to change the chemical reaction from negative to positive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A stressful part of feeling stressed is the time it takes to feel less stressed. How\u2019s that for irony? But like the best things in life, when we prioritize completing the Stress Cycle, we can feel immediate positive impacts and the effects of prolonged stress can be reversed before we go into full blown burnout. In my personal experience, here are the five most effective ways to stop the Stress Cycle and come back from the edge of burnout.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Seems so cliched and overdone but like the best cliches, this one is also true. Take the stairs instead of the elevator, wash your dishes by hand instead of using the dishwasher, do a few stretches in your office. Honestly, any moment at all, no matter how quick or small, will have a positive impact by bumping up the production of your brain\u2019s feel-good neurotransmitters, called endorphins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Boundaries are our limits of what we will and will not do. Identify what your personal boundaries are and then communicate them to others. This is probably the hardest part \u2013 the people most likely to be upset by any boundaries you communicate are those that are crossing your boundaries. Boundary crossing is a stressor<\/em> in your life and you know now that stressors are what cause chemical stress<\/em> so remove the stressor before burnout occurs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There\u2019s a reason art therapy works. It\u2019s a physical representation of your internal stressors and a really great way to purge negativity from your body and leave it all on the proverbial dance floor, paint canvas or concert hall. By communicating through creative expression, you foster self-awareness, boost self-esteem, and connect with others, all positive ways to close the Stress Cycle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Physical touch has long been used as a method to reduce stress in premature babies so why wouldn\u2019t it also work for us as adults? There is a lot of research out there to support the effectiveness of this kind of positive physical contact and as Drs. Emily and Amelia Nagoski explain on Brown\u2019s podcast, \u201cthe research suggests that a 20 second hug can change your hormones, lower your blood pressure and heart rate and improve mood, all of which are reflected in the post hug increase in the social bonding hormone, oxytocin.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Have you heard of Laughter Yoga? I thought it was fake until I learned of Dr. Madan Kataria, a family physician from India who modernized the teachings of earlier laughter pioneers from the 1960s. Dr. Kataria suggests that laughter promises to reduce feelings of stress, boost immunity, fight depression and leads to more positive thinking. In Laughter Yoga, you start with fake laughing until you feel so ridiculous that the laughter becomes real and the magic within your body starts to happen. It\u2019s this kind of mouth-hanging-open, uncontrolled, belly-shaking laughter than can take you through the end of the Stress Cycle and change your stress chemicals from negative to positive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before my ah-ha moment when I realized I\u2019d gotten my hope back, I didn\u2019t realize how far into burnout I\u2019d fallen due to the prolonged stress I\u2019d been carrying around in my body. Even as the various stressors had been removed from my life, I realize now that I hadn\u2019t really done anything to intentionally complete the Stress Cycle and reverse the negative chemical reaction in my body. Burnout is your body\u2019s physical response to the impact of stressors in your life and it\u2019s empowering to recognize that while the stressors themselves feel uncontrollable, I can take control over completing my Stress Cycle and take action to start to feel better. Takes work, and intention, and a change of priority but you too can implement any of these five ways to complete your own Stress Cycle and come back from the edge of burnout.<\/p>\n\n\n\n (Originally published in SIM Women Colorado’s<\/a> monthly newsletter. Learn more about this incredible organization for women in technology here<\/a>!)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I realized I\u2019d lost my hope the day I recognized I got it back. Totally innocuous moment \u2013 driving along, thinking of nothing important \u2013 when I sat up a little taller\u2026and immediately slouched back down. Waves of emotion were rolling over me, from pride and relief, to fear and disappointment. I mean, I\u2019m a reasonably self-aware person\u2026how did I … <\/p>\n The Stress Cycle<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Five Most Effective Ways to Stop the Stress Cycle<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
1) Move your body<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
2) Set Boundaries<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
3) Get Creative<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
4) Hug \u2013 for a long time<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
5) Laugh your butt off<\/h4>\n\n\n\n