How to manage burnout and get out of stress mode without taking a holiday.
1. Take relaxation with you into your day; stop thinking of relaxation as a singular event that has to occur at a certain place, taking up a certain amount of time. You need to start inviting smaller doses of relaxation into your body and mind all throughout the day. Here are some examples of how to achieve this;
Deep belly breathing, you can do this at any time of the day. You can do it in the middle of a meeting, talking to someone or even sitting at your desk or nursing your baby. Wherever it is, deep belly breathing is going to be helpful as it sends a signal to your nervous system that it is safe to rest and digest, it also relaxes held tension in the pelvic and abdomen region and allows for greater blood flow. When constriction of blood flow and muscle tension is taken out of the picture; this is a huge energy saver and even replenisher!!!
Slow your eye movements down, and consciously sight what you see. When your body is in a fight-flight / stress state and releasing adrenaline, the eyes are adapted to allow you to see more at a faster rate. If we slow down this response, we can signal to the brain that we don’t need to stay in that adrenaline state and you’ll notice you feel a lot less scattered.
Release judgement; give this a try for me. In a moment of overwhelm, stress, exhaustion, dis-comfort or even anger/frustration. Take 60 seconds to breathe and invite in the statement “I release all judgment in this moment, and accept it as it is”. Just see what you experience.
2. Cut the sugar, cut the stimulants and nourish your body. I know this is a sensitive topic, but I remember working 9-5 office jobs, and being fed or having easy access to sugary, processed, chemical filled foods and snacks. I cannot stress how much of an important one this is for your entire mental and physical well-being. Internally and externally. Rather than masking cravings and fatigue by adding stimulants, I urge you to soften, take some deep breaths and give your body something nourishing.
3. Think of the body and mind as a tunnel in which life force flows through. if you sit hunched, if you over think negatively, if you eat unhealthy foods, if you sit in one spot for too long, the tunnel is becoming clogged and blocked up. And the life force is struggling to flow through, making it strained and low quality. If however you take a quick moment, to gently shake up and down, to encourage the lymphatic system to flow freely, take a breath in and out with the intention to clear the mind, you are going to be creating a flowing system in that tunnel, life force flowing through effortlessly and vigorously. So if you cant do this in public, go to the bathroom, soften the knees, and bounce up and down for a few moments as you take a long breath in and a long breath out.