I can't speak for everyone when it comes to how it feels to hit a point of burn out. However, I can describe how burn-out felt for me, and I do think the burn-out conversation is one worth having (frequently). Each time, I have felt almost heightened at first, drowning in adrenaline, stress, excitement and anxiety and not catching breath for weeks and weeks on end. But then this has been splattered with days of just wanting to be in bed, or feeling highly irritated. The wanting and needing to rest, is followed quickly by internal thoughts of 'you are lazy, what will people think of you if you rest - you must push on, you have to do your bit for your workplace...your family'. So pushing on resumes, as this is what others around me seem to be doing. Often this is then followed by a few illnesses in a row - colds, covid, flu etc and the purchase of lots of bottles of multivitamins to 'fix' this insufficiency in my ability to tough it out and be a good Mum and Vet. Luckily, at some point, there has been a degree of recognition. Recognition has come in the form of;- realisation that my ability to regulate emotions is off (big internal reactions to small things)- the degree of tiredness I'm feeling is disproportionate- the constant illness indicating to me my immune system is out of whackAnd luckily, this has prompted me to make some changes (eventually...I was a slow learner). The only reason I don't like the phrase burn out, is because it sounds so final. Burn out. Like that is it - burnt to the ground, never to rise from a bunch of ashes. However, what I have learnt is that you can recover from bouts of 'burn out'. I really don't want this post to be an 'I've recovered so you can too' patronising thing. I think the recovery (for me at least) is something ongoing - a moving part - something that I am still always teetering on, but am now actively working on avoiding.
Avoiding Burn Out - what has worked for me
I have to put a disclaimer on this. I am not a psychologist, I'm just a vet who has pushed myself to every possible limit and remain standing (just).
Please take from my 10 points anything that is helpful and ditch the rest.
1 - I bought myself one of those Oura rings. As vets we like data, and seeing hard data about yourself keeps you honest. You can lie to yourself that you are sleeping and exercising well, but the Oura ring will remind you of the truth.
2 - I've spoken about this before, and harping on about it will sound a bit hollow, so I will keep it to one word - Nutrition. The nutritionist I recommend is Jackie Bowker.
3 - Priority lists/journaling. If you have your priorities written down in front of you, it is much harder to get distracted by non-priorities. My work and family are my main priorities but I have broken this down to specifics e.g. what type of work is a priority. Whenever I say no to something, instead of fretting I have missed an opportunity, I think of it as a 'yes' to something else higher on the list of priorities.
4 - At one point I wrote a list of the things that drained me, and then worked on practical solutions. An example - I hated writing records, to the point that when I sat down at the computer to do this, I felt a sense of dread. Love the theatre, hate the records. So I wrote a bunch of templates and now I just click and it comes up. AI will likely solve this for us in the next few years, however it is the principle. What drains you?, what is your practical solution?.
5 - Around 10 years ago, when life got tough (by virtue of having kids, one with special needs, and my career progressing etc) I decided to invest every 12-18 months in a health retreat. There are various ones - I really like Gwinganna on the gold coast. They are packed with useful info about how to look after yourself. They are pretty expensive, around $6-800 per day. Do you want to know what is more expensive? - burn out. I've seen this with multiple colleagues who have burnt out and can't work for long periods of time.
6 - 3 session psychology rule. A human doctor friend of mine once said to me, if you are having a mental health issue and you get onto it early, it can be solved in 3 sessions. Psychologists may hate me if they read this, and tell me it is an oversimplification. But this is my post, and it's about what has worked for me. I took this advice, and if I was struggling with anything, instead of thinking 'I'm permanently broken/burnt out/anxious', I've thought '3 session rule', and I have invested in myself - early.
7 - I think I've finally realised what mindfulness means. A lot of what drained me was dread/worry for the future - how much work there was to get through, what people think of me/say about me etc. I really now try to focus on what is in front of me, versus worry about what 'might' happen. I think this is what mindfulness tries to teach, more of a focus on the moment.
8 - I am organised and prepared. This type of personality is more prone to burn out, but I now utilise this skill to prepare/schedule rest and relaxation as well as work. To be honest, this is a work in progress...
9 - I only work in a practice where I have a degree of autonomy over my work. My boss Dave told me this was one of the key protective factors against burn out and I agree. This will look different for every practice, position and how far progressed you are within your career.
10 - Finally - billing. This is not something I have any problem with now, because I know how important it is. I am a kind person and my love for animals flows through my veins in everything I do - but it is an exception that I will discount a bill or service. Discounting is the quickest way to burning out not only yourself, but your entire team.
And that is me - my 10 things I do to reduce burn out.
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