“Burnout” has become somewhat of a buzzword in the last few years; it’s a concept we’ve all almost certainly heard thrown around but may not truly know what it means.
Burnout is when your body and mind have worked past the point of exhaustion, signalling that you need to rest.
I’m willing to bet that most of you reading this have experienced some level of what the definition above describes. It’s okay—I have, too.
It’s all too common for us as college students to throw way too much on our plates without an understanding of how taxing it may become on our future selves. Sure, a full course load, part-time job, internship, exercise routine, and volunteer commitments sounds like a great resume-building semester, but it only takes one domino for them all to tumble.
During periods of life when we are extremely busy, it becomes vital to self-monitor. Take out a journal and check in with yourself.
Some signs you might be feeling burnt out are headaches, major changes in sleep patterns, getting sick, low motivation, anxiety, irritability, difficulty concentrating, and feeling overwhelmed.
Burnout can sneak up on you, and next thing you know you’re down the rabbit hole.
There are a couple ways you can try and get through this—some healthy, some not so healthy. The biggest tip I can give you is to make time for rest.
As you probably already know, sleep is crucial to learning, yet we so often push it to the back burner when things get busy. Try not to compromise on eight hours, even if you have a ton of assignments or midterms. The work you do rested will be better than the work you do exhausted.
It may seem counterintuitive, but if you know that you are feeling burnt out, prioritize rest. Schedule it in, take Sundays off of schoolwork, whatever you need to do. Burnout is your brain begging for rest—listen to it.
Side tangent here, but rest isn’t very restful when it’s in front of a screen, so do your best to unplug for a few hours a week.
Like we talked about last time, work/life balance is key and can help mitigate symptoms of burnout. Sometimes, grabbing lunch with your friends can do way more for you than an extra hour of studying.
Finally, if you are experiencing burnout don’t be afraid to ask for help. Camosun has plenty of resources to help you if it all feels like too much.
Take a breath, talk to someone; it’s going to be alright.