Burned Out
Has anyone been "Burned Out" from work or something else? Right now, I'm there. I don't even have focus to go out an hike! For those who have been there and done that, what now?
Get moving. Seriously. Walk, jog, run, exercise, bicycle, treadmill. Doesn't matter what. Inactivity leads to depression. Activity can help deal with it, if not cure it.
Have a nice big glass of water, put on some upbeat music, talk to another human in person. Grab a pad of paper and plan out some healthy meals for the week. Donate $10 to a local charity. Volunteer locally.
I am very much there right now. Thankfully I have an 18 day hike in the middle of nowhere, no phones, no email just pure soul refreshing Mother Nature and exercise, the perfect remedy for absolute burnout.
enemy of unnecessary but innovative trail invention gadgetry
Been there (well, almost there).
Stopped working and went out walking, which turned into hiking which finally brought me back to life.
Go out to a waterfall, jump in. Better if it's cold.
Walk in the rain. FEEL IT. I like listening to this by The Alarm as I'm doing it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8D6pPgwafq0 Better, much better, when you're with your SF listening to it making love in the woods while it's raining!
Music - I like electronic dance club music or something inspirational.
I like this Youtube vide by Chemical Brothers https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epCPoQchswE
I like watching and/or hearing this Orbital song at sunrise particularly when in Nature, on the beach, etc, - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGXgCuTCrj8
I like walking to this by Fitz and the Tantrums: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGBLlFMn9Xc
This gets me on my feet by Gloria Estefan - Get On Your feet:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JPOSGVUYgVQ Consider WHY this song came about. What was going on in Estefan's life, having to learn to walk again after the bus accident where they said she would never perform again and might not ever walk again. I always feel grateful and inspired when I hear this song.
Buy a hungry person dinner. Take your shirt and watch off, clean shirt, and give it to him.
Go down to the shopping mall or public square and hold up a Free Hugs sign. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_Hugs_Campaign
Go to a Comedy Club or get around people that like to laugh.
Get 8 hrs deep uninterrupted sleep/take a power nap.
Eat a healthy tasty nutritious meal.
Do the ridiculous and outdated and something you've never done
…Karaoke night down at Mel's Bar Make a happy fool of yourself.
Watch It's a Wonderful Life
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkTLIO2zanM
This guy - Nicholas Vujicic - inspires me to be thankful https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jhcxOhIMAQ
Heather Anderson's TedX talk inspired me so much more for her courageous decisions to immerse herself in her passions that go beyond attaining FKT's https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pgDeh2XDNY4
Reading Bill Erwins' Blind Courage inspires me. Bill relating he fell 1000's of times yet again and again and again getting up has always been an inspiration for me never allowing me to feel so burned out.
NOTE what's happening here with all these suggestions. They surround being passionate, energized, laughing, and being grateful.
Hiking has always cured burnout for me until my last hike. HST/JMT. Beautiful, as always, and went well but didn't provide the remedy it usually does. Maybe I should have kept hiking on to Tahoe. It really is a wonderful remedy for "real life" usually...
Just get out on the trail if you are able to do so...once you get there your troubles will melt away. Sometimes the only way to recharge is to get away for awhile. Don't think about work when you aren't there...this is key.
Everyone is different. I've discovered that if things are *too* screwed up in "real life" that I cannot enjoy backpacking no matter how beautiful the trail or how long I am out. Others report the opposite. For me things have to be basically good at home to enjoy getting out. That's just me. I've discovered that the hard way a couple of times.
Everyone has ups and downs. I personally believe in thinking and documenting what and where you want to be at a future point, putting together a plan, and working it will help pull you along. Good luck.
Take a short hike just to get back to yourself.
If you can't get out or you're not up for it, take a walk. Make sure you're hydrated, eating well, etc. Put on some good times. Call a friend. Hang in there. I've been where you are. You'll get through this.
Um, that should have said "good tunes." But hey, nothing wrong with watching a few episodes of Good Times! ::head-desk::Originally Posted by becfoot
A change of scenery is always good when you're feeling "burned out." Sometimes you have to force yourself to get out and do something. If your work is burning you out, then it's time for a few days off or a vacation.
Every day may not be good, but there is good in every day!
Alcohol...
Colorless green ideas sleep furiously.
+1 I tend to be similar. Unless things are working in work and/or home life, hiking even for a short time does little to change that and feels more like running away. The problem with running away from problems is they catch up to you pretty quickly whenever and where ever you stop. I have found the method that works best for me is to identify the problem(s) or circumstance(s) causing the burned out feeling. Once identified, hiking can help in making time to formulate a strategy in dealing with the problem or changing the circumstances.
Go fishing
It is all a matter of perspective - what some view as running away - others view as a time to re-center. I find that when things are not working or just flat out tough at work, a weekend away on a backpacking trip, or even just a long walk rejuvenates me, helps me focus on the issue at hand, and often times helps me to find an alternative way ahead. To me it is not running away - you cannot run away from reality, but you can take time away to help re-focus, re-center, and then deal with whatever the whatever is. The problem and circumstances and the various branches and sequels of the problem for me many times are easily defined. The solution set is not always that easy to come by, particularly when you are close to the problem. So, distance away with time to not have to be within the problem/issue in the moment, for me at least is quite helpful.
"Too often I would hear men boast of the miles covered that day, rarely of what they had seen." Louis L’Amour
This is complicated. I have been evaluating medical research on mental illness, fatigue and burnout for 27 years. Getting an accurate diagnosis is critical. A recent study found job burnout to be caused by a fundamental lack of energy coming back from work related activities. I have been there. Unfortunately burnout is a diagnosis that must come from a process of elimination; systemic cause (body) , depression (brain) , job incompatibility. . . . .
The only fix for this is accurate diagnosis followed by empirically effective treatment.
A lot of it depends on personality. When there are problems I tend to replay scenarios and situations in my mind in an endless loop unless actively engaged mentally on something else (like work). If I'm hiking solo, that circular endless loop can replay constantly while walking and especially when in camp. Hiking is physically tough but there are lots of free mental cycles to think about things. When I'm looking at a spreadsheet or writing, those mental cycles are occupied by other things. When life is going relatively well, enjoying the physical exertion of hiking is more possible as thoughts of life in general are positive, not an endless negative loop.
OK, I'm off the couch now...
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