Thursday, 19 June 2014

Burnout

The topic for today is burnout. I know we've all experienced it… pushed ourselves too far and then we're turned into a mental mess. Once you've burnt out it take some time to recover. Everything takes so much longer because you're mentally (and physically) exhausted. Your grades won't be as high as you want them to be, assignments will take forever, you'll be making silly mistakes. I've done them all.

I know how easy it is to put off hanging out with friends, working out, going for a walk, reading a book in order to sit in your room and study or finish those 50 million assignments. Remember you need to give your brain a break! Sitting for long periods of time is actually bad for your health! It can cause lower back issues from constant spine flexion and neck pain which leads to killer headaches. Trust me, I'm in kinesiology. And I've experienced this too many times for it to be okay.

I like to work out, or go for a walk as my breaks. I feel like I'm on top of the world after a workout and I'm so much more productive (it's those endorphins at work ;) ). I know how difficult it is to actually get your butt off your chair, change out of your pyjamas and trek over to the gym; I've made up every excuse in the book to not get off my chair.

"I have way too much to do, I'm going to be wasting my time", "I don't have time for this. I have x, y, z to do" - typical excuses of mine

But I've also learnt that if I don't take care of myself that will be more detrimental and will waste more of my time than the one hour I'll be "wasting" at the gym. It will take two times longer for me to actually write a lab report or do an assignment, than if I take a break and come back to it later.

If going to the gym isn't your cup of tea then watching a favourite tv show (in moderation, no netflix binge watching), meditating, reading a book, practicing yoga, having a dance party in your room (another favourite) all work as well! As long as you're giving that poor brain of yours some well deserved rest.

So next time you're trying to decide if you need a break after you've been working for a long period of time the answer is always yes!

- Jen

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