Burnout Isn’t Your Fault -But Recovery Is Your Responsibility
Let’s start with the uncomfortable truth.
You didn’t burn out because you weren’t resilient enough.
You didn’t burn out because you didn’t meditate enough.
You burned out because you were working in a system that rewards self-abandonment and calls it “professionalism.”
What Burnout Recovery Actually Looks Like (Spoiler: It’s Boring, But It Works)
Here’s a hard truth no one tells you when you're spiralling into burnout: recovery is deeply unsexy.
There are no confetti cannons. No dramatic breakthroughs. No euphoric walk into the sunset where everything finally makes sense.
Mostly, it’s boiled eggs. Saying no to things that technically sound fun. Crying in the bath and then cleaning the bath because your brain couldn’t handle the chaos. It’s unlearning the belief that your worth is tied to your output. It’s small, boring choices that add up slowly.
How to Recover from Burnout: The First Step (and Why It’s Not a Spa Day)
You can’t bubble bath your way out of systemic overwhelm. And you definitely can’t gratitude-journal your way through emotional depletion if your nervous system is fried and your brain feels like it’s buffering.
Burnout is not just tiredness with better branding.
It’s not a bad day.
When Burnout Starts To Look Like Trauma
I didn’t realise I was burning out until people started pointing out that my usually sharp memory was doing an uncanny impression of a sieve. And I might default response to anything (good or bad) was to cry.
But here’s the truth: I wasn’t just burnt out. I was beginning to experience symptoms that looked a lot like trauma.
The Sneaky Signs of Burnout You Shouldn’t Ignore
It crept in quietly, like damp in a poorly ventilated staff room. At first, it was just a few off days. Then a few more. Then suddenly I couldn’t remember the last time I felt fully human.
If you're reading this and thinking, "Same," then allow me to put into words what your brain might be too frazzled to Google.