BURNOUT

[PODCAST TRANSCRIPT]

Did you know one in four adults feels unable to manage stress and pressure in the workplace? Or that 71% of employees found that work stress has caused a personal relationship to end? 

I’m Savannah Alalia, and welcome to the latest episode of High Functioning Human podcast, where you get to connect to yourself as a high functioning human. 

Today, we’re addressing a common challenge many people face, burnout and maintaining wellness in your daily life, at work and at home. Recognising that you’ve got a problem is the first step, and it can be a huge issue for people who tend to push themselves too much. Accepting that you’ve reached your limit can be a very hard thing to do. I know all too well how burnout can sneak up on you when you ignore that limit. In fact, there was a time in my early thirties when I ignored my body’s signs that enough was enough. And to that point, I eventually broke my sacrum. Whilst this is definitely something that you want to avoid, ideally I do recommend addressing burnout signs before your bones start to break. 

So what exactly is burnout? Well, burnout is a state of emotional and physical mental exhaustion caused by excessive and prolonged stress. I’m sure you know it if you have experienced it, because it happens when you feel overwhelmed or unable to meet constant demands. And as the overwhelm builds, your capacity runs lower and lower and lower. And in addition to less energy, you may find that you lose interest in motivation, both in work and in the things that you enjoy. And this can reach a breaking point, a complete disconnect, physically and mentally. When you hear about burnout, it’s often in the context of mental health issues. And so it’s common to consider its effects on your mental and emotional well being.

But burnout goes beyond this. Increased stress can seriously impact your physical health too. And as I mentioned earlier, burnout for me showed up in a very, very physical way. So let’s go into this physical aspect a little bit. 

I’ll try to avoid getting too sciency, but I want you to really understand how your body can react if it gets ignored for too long. And then importantly, I’m going to go into the other side of things. The freedom that can come from addressing your body’s needs and allowing your body to let that stress go. 

So, everyday stress is normal. It’s unavoidable. And under that everyday stress, the body’s stress response system is self regulating. And what that means is that what normally happens when that stressor passes, your stress hormone levels, adrenaline and cortisol, return to a baseline and they self regulate. But when the feeling of stress is ever present, you get overexposed to those stress hormones, which can disrupt almost all of the body’s processes. 

Studies have actually shown that this can put you at a higher risk of anxiety, depression, digestive problems, headaches, muscle tension and pain, heart disease, heart attacks, high blood pressure, strokes, sleep problems, weight gain, problems with memory and focus. I mean, the list just goes on. And as a knock on, dealing with those kinds of issues, reduces your capacity, which can then increase your stress levels even more. 

Other studies show that stress, especially when chronic, can even weaken your immune response. That is, your ability to even fight off disease. Could you ever imagine you’d be more likely to catch a cold or the flu simply because your stress levels are too high? This is why I’m so obsessed with looking at things holistically, and why I believe in the importance of taking serious time to listen to your body. 

Given that up to 80% of working professionals say that they experience burnout, it’s something we clearly need more tools to deal with. So what can you do about it? Whether you’re looking into practising preemptive stress reduction, or you feel like you’re on an edge or in burnout itself, there are steps you can take. And a key part of this transformation is recognizing that self care is essential and is something that needs to be ongoing. 

You’ve maybe heard the motivational phrase, self care isn’t selfish, but do you actually believe it? People who are stuck in an overstimulated, overworked, over pressured environment often think that self care is a low priority or even an indulgence. But this is seriously untrue. When dealing with intense levels of stress, your fascia can get stuck to the point that you can experience chronic pain.

And believe me, I’m speaking from experience with this. When you recognise that the stress is there and acknowledge it physically, you’re signalling to your body that it can let that stress go. 

You can do this by incorporating regular fascia release practices in bodywork and facial techniques to support your fascia and body, to release that stress, and to bring your pain and mental capacity back to normal. When you do start to address these things, just as the body responds to increased stress, it also responds remarkably well to calm thoughts and intention. And studies show that regular meditation actually enhances long term immune function. 

Going into nature, paying attention to the things that you can see and feel around you, getting present in your body, grounding yourself, having a bath or a shower, and feeling the sensations of the water on your skin. These are all ways in which you can support your body to let go. Now that you’re aware that you can hold stress physically in your body, in your fascia, and the implications that come from ignoring that stress, hopefully I’ve given you enough reasons to believe in the importance of practising self care in a preventative approach to burnout.

Taking the time for practices like my Your Face Symmetry program daily allows your body to trust that you have its best interests at heart. It’s like you become attuned, more attuned to the signals that your body is sending. I always say that your body talks and you just need to know how to listen. You need to be in that conversation. If you want to learn more about them, then please feel free to reach out to me via email or if you’ve got any questions about what will work best for you with where you’re at right now. 

That motivation and interest in the things that you love is just sleeping, waiting for you to give it the space to come forward again. 

Remember, trust your instincts. Follow your intuition because the world needs your voice and the magic that it brings to us all. 

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As always, I remain a cheerleader for your inner self-worth,