Feeling burnout, exhausted, unmotivated? You’re not alone. It’s normal, here’s why...
So many of us have just kept pushing through, until eventually, we run out of “surge capacity” - a series of adaptive systems we draw on for SHORT TERM SURVIVAL in acutely stressful situations, such as natural disasters.
However, this pandemic we are facing stretches out indefinitely, & we are reaching our surge capacity limits.
When it’s depleted, it has to be renewed. But what happens when you struggle to renew because the emergency phase has now become chronic?
How do we adjust to an ever-changing situation where the “new normal” is indefinite uncertainty?
Unlike a natural disaster where you can look outside & see the damage. The destruction is, for most people, invisible & ongoing.
So many support systems aren’t working as they normally do.
It’s normal in a situation of great uncertainty & chronic stress to get exhausted + to feel ups & downs, to feel like you’re depleted or experience periods of burnout.
We are reckoning with ambiguous loss - it’s unclear & lacks a resolution.
So what can we do?
1. Accept that life is different right now.
Acceptance doesn’t mean giving up, it means not resisting or fighting reality so that you can apply your energy elsewhere.
2. Expect less of yourself.
We are used to hearing ”expect more of yourself”, but right now, we need to give ourselves permission to expect less & replenish more.
Recognize that we’re grieving multiple losses while managing the ongoing impact of trauma & uncertainty. No one can function at full capacity with all that going on.
3. Experiment with “both-and” thinking.
Holding the pain + gain. Loss + growth. We can’t change the situation, but we can change our perception of it. We have to face reality, but how we frame it can help us cope.
4. Look for activities new & old that fulfill you.
Our new normal feels a little off balance, like trying to stand in a dinghy on rough seas, & not knowing when the storm will pass.
When You Have Nothing Left
