You’re burnt out, what now?
There are four simple steps to make sure you’re able to recharge. The steps sound very obvious and your initial instinct would likely be to ignore them, but I do urge you to take the time and schedule in some of these actions into your day and see the difference they make.
Steps
The first is to make some time for yourself to take care of your well being.
Take a bath. Try to enjoy your bath by using speciality products like bath bombs! Or soak up and read a book and have some tea.
Go for a walk. Make sure to appreciate the sounds and sights you see around you.
Eat a meal without distractions (that includes your phone but television is okay—remember this is time for you to relax).
The second is to have proper sleep.
As difficult as this sounds, try to sleep early. Set a time that feels doable to sleep.
If you have difficulty falling asleep, it’s time for you to address it using a professional. Talk to a doctor about your inability to fall asleep and see if there are any ways they can help you.
Sleep well. When you’re scheduling in your sleep, make sure that you’re sleeping for the right number of hours for you, 7 hours is a great amount.
The third is to eat well.
A lot of busy people have a hard time eating well, you can get stuck in a cycle of eating out. You could try meal planning where you cook all your meals once a week and then you’re able to heat them up and eat them later.
Others buy meal plans where food is delivered to them with recipes and portions, availability depending on your location.
Try to source from your community, maybe someone can cook food for you and this way, you can have home cooked meals and create a communal bond.
The fourth and last is to enjoy life’s happy moments.
There are so many moments in life where you are so immensely happy, sometimes it is while you are looking at your niece’s dancing, or your father repeating that story about the first time he left his country. Instead of being on your phone ignoring everyone or taking pictures, try to immerse yourself in your life’s happy moments. Try to touch the grass that you’re sitting on and really take it in, breathe in the fresh air and give the person you’re with your full attention. You will find that those small moments are what make life, well, life!
But how can I stick to these steps?
In order to make sure you stick to the activities you have picked for yourself, I’m going to give you three and a half additional tips, these tips, of course, don’t apply for the fourth step, as it is more of a life-long commitment to be self-aware.
Tips
One is to make sure to pick ones you know you will enjoy. This ensures that you will not avoid it and put it off when the time comes. It’s understandable that some of these activities can be difficult to implement, but choose some that actually make sense to you and your needs and doesn’t feel like it will add more stress to your life. Which of these steps stood out to you as something you need to change in your life?
The second is to schedule the activity into your life. You’re a busy person and have a lot on your plate, you will probably forget to take a long bath after an exhausting day or to sleep at 9 PM, so why add extra worries on yourself? Just add the activity into your calendar and try to stick to it.
Lastly, remember to keep it simple. Don’t commit yourself to many lifestyle changes, it’ll overwhelm you and make you feel like these activities are a chore. Try to start with a couple of steps that you know you could probably accomplish or you really desperately need to work on. Try to be easy on yourself, be flexible with how you implement these changes into your life. It’s okay if you sleep by 9:45 PM or 10 in the first few weeks, but try to actively work on your goals, and hopefully you will slowly live a life where you’re not burning out every couple of months!
Check out this blog post by Angela Ocampo for more!