I think everyone has had to deal with a burnout at some point in their life. I know for SURE I have had my fair share of burnouts. From college to now, with me studying for the MCATs, burnouts are things that I have, unfortunately, had to deal with. Of course, there are preventative measures that can be taken to avoid such circumstances.
However, there are sometimes where you ignore those signs. Or, sometimes your body just gives the signs to take a rest BY making you have a burnout. If you’ve ignored all signs, or didn’t have any, and have managed to become burnt out, I hope that these three tricks help you accelerate your healing process to have your brain feel functional again.
1 – Put the phone away and touch grass
I didn’t realize how much I was on my laptop studying until I started to feel my eyes growing tired every single time I would look at my laptop the next morning. Taking a break from technology is so nice and relaxing. I don’t have to worry about who’s texting me, what notifications I have on my phone, my emails, my flashcards, the topics I need to study, etc. I get to feel as if time isn’t going at the speed of light and enjoy my time to myself.
So, I will turn off my phone for a bit and go outside into my backyard. I listen to all of the birds within the environment and watch the sky as they fly from tree to tree. I also love when I hear the windchimes that are installed. Or, I just love to bask in the sun whenever there’s a glimpse of sunlight where I sit. If I’m really feeling it, I put on some of my favorite classical music and just close my eyes.
With studying, working, whatever it may be, it sometimes feels like time is going and going and you just have to keep up. Especially if you like to work or study at your own house, and I know that’s me. However, I know that if I think like that, then I will wear myself down. And eventually, my body, mind, and/or soul will tell me to slow down. Everyone takes a rest, even the sun, so why can’t I?
2 – Talk to the people you love
While it is nice to have some alone time with yourself, we are social creatures. So, it’s nice to have someone to talk to. You can talk about what’s been taking up the majority of your time, or if you want, you can talk about other topics to get your mind off of that. You can talk to your family, friends, whomever it may be. Again, it’s nice to take your mind away from the workload that you’ve been handling to something that brings you joy.
For me, I would talk to my family and just enjoy my time with them. Because, again, for me, I know that I was losing my mind studying. It felt like 24/7, whenever I looked at the clock, it said study, study, study, sleep, wake up, and repeat. We could have regular conversations, play games, watch movies, dance around the kitchen, and I would have such a great time. I didn’t have to think about anything and it felt like I was having some sort of downtime.
But what if I want to get ahead and I know I can push myself to get this done? Well, think about it like this: you have a closet that you have continuously crammed clothes in. Every single time you put clothes into that closet, you have to close the door quicker and quicker, so everything doesn’t collapse on the floor. You have a feeling that you can add just a few more pieces of clothing, but you also know that this closet will burst.
Sometimes, it’s just better to step back and allow yourself to have that break versus pushing yourself to your limit because you just want to get it over with. I’ve done that before, and I’ll say this: I usually wouldn’t remember the material as well. Now, when I quit for the day and went over the material I wanted to go over the next day, I digested the material so much better.
3 – Get some rest
Yes, you hear everyone say that you should get some proper sleep, but why? Well, because it’s amazing for you! I know right, crazy to think about. But, I’m serious. With the example I stated earlier about me not remembering the material, it’s because I would also get some proper sleep. Proper sleep for me means absolute silence and no lights. So, I don’t sleep with a TV on and with zero lights on. This way, my brain isn’t trying to process things as I’m sleeping.
Also, I want to get a bit sciency. If you know this, then you can just skip over these two paragraphs. But, if you don’t know about the four stages of sleep and want to learn more about it, then keep reading :). So, there are four stages of sleep: NREM1, NREM2, NREM3, and REM. NREM1 is when you are in the process of falling asleep (dozing off). In NREM1 to NREM2, you have theta waves. In NREM1, you only have theta waves. In NREM2, you have theta waves that have sleep spindles (high frequency waves) and K-complexes (high amplitude waves).
When it comes to NREM3, this is called the slow-wave sleep or SWS where we have delta waves. Delta waves are low frequency with higher voltage waves. In this stage, this is where memory consolidation occurs, growth hormones are produced, and cognition recovery is done here. Finally, you have REM (rapid eye movement), which is dispersed between NREM1 – NREM3 where you have symptoms of alertness, but you are asleep. Those symptoms would be elevated heart rate, increasing breathing rate, etc.
Now, if you’re questioning why the heck I just spent two paragraphs explaining the stages of sleep, then I’ll sum it up for you in this paragraph with this sentence: sleep is good for your mind. This is when everything in your mind goes to its storage place and your body takes care of you. They go into many processes for recovery all while you’re sleeping, so wouldn’t you think that’s important? That’s why there are studies that show it’s better to get a full night’s sleep before an exam than cramming. So, do your body a favor and go get some rest.
4 – Healthy mind = healthy gut
I think we’ve heard that food is fuel for the body. Well, it’s the same when it comes to burnout. If you’ve been eating absolute junk and are wondering why you may feel like crap, look at what you’ve been putting into it. This also includes what you’ve been watching and reading, but that’s for another blog post. Giving yourself the correct nutrition is so important for your body.
Am I saying you have to eat like a rabbit? No. But, I’m saying that, if you can, look at the foods that you are eating and see if there’s a healthy alternative to that. Because, I’ve noticed that whenever I start eating absolute junk food, I feel a bit more tired. It just feels like my body could be functioning better. Also, I feel like junk food isn’t that filling, so I feel like I need to eat a bit more to make my stomach feel full.
So, if you can, do little things that can bring you better nutrition in your day-to-day life. Whenever I’m having a burnout, I look at what I’ve been doing for the past couple of days and figure out if I’ve been eating more junk than I would like to admit. If that’s true, then I change my diet, and what do you know? I start feeling much better!
5 – Do what you love
I’ll admit that whenever I’m feeling burnout, I sometimes draw, sing, dance, write, meditate, do yoga, walk with my dog, etc. I just do things that I enjoy doing. My hobbies are activities that truly bring me joy because, after a long time, I just want to participate in things that I know will allow me to relax.
It’s sometimes the little things that bring the most joy out of life. During burnouts, I also use this as a time to treat myself to whatever I’ve been wanting to try. Trying that new cafe that you’ve had on your list, walking in your favorite park, reading your favorite book, whatever it may be. As long as it brings a smile to your face, then that’s all that should matter.
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