Burnout doesn’t happen overnight. It sneaks up on you.

Here are some hints that you might be running on empty:
⚠️ Small tasks feel overwhelming
⚠️ You’re always exhausted (even after sleep)
⚠️ You’ve lost passion for things you once loved
⚠️ Everything irritates you

If these hints sound familiar then this post is for you!

If the signs of burnout are ignored your body will inevitably say “No” and force you to rest, potentially beginning a painful cycle of burnout and rest. According to Gabor Mate in his book “When the Body Says No - The Cost of Hidden Stress”:

“The body’s hormonal system is inextricably linked with the brain centres where emotions are experienced and interpreted. In turn, the hormonal apparatus and the emotional centres are interconnected with the immune system and the nervous system. These are not four separate systems, but one
super-system that functions as a unit to protect the body from external invasion and from disturbances to the internal physiological condition. It is
impossible for any stressful stimulus, chronic or acute, to act on only one part of the super-system. What happens to one will affect all”.

….

“It may seem paradoxical to claim that stress, a physiological mechanism vital to life, is a cause of illness. To resolve this apparent contradiction, we must differentiate between acute stress and chronic stress. Acute stress is the immediate, short-term body response to threat. Chronic stress is activation of the stress mechanisms over long periods of time when a person is exposed to stressors that cannot be escaped either because she does not recognize them or because she has no control over them. Discharges of nervous system, hormonal output and immune changes constitute the flight-or-fight reactions that help us survive immediate danger. These biological responses are adaptive in the emergencies for which nature designed them. But the same stress responses, triggered chronically and without resolution, produce harm and even permanent damage. Chronically high cortisol levels destroy tissue. Chronically elevated adrenalin levels raise the blood pressure and damage the heart. There is extensive documentation of the inhibiting effect of chronic stress on the immune system.”