Written By: Lauren Howard
I was shouting at myself to get up.
That’s what it felt like, at least. My brain was yelling at my body to get upright and get back to work.
There was so much that had to be done.
So, so, so, so much.
But there I was, laying down and unable to connect my brain and my body enough to make my legs do what my head was saying.
That? That was burnout.
It was the scariest thing I remember experiencing in a long time.
Earlier that morning? I was fine.
Okay. I wasn’t fine. I was exhausted. I was overworked. I was overwhelmed with the sheer amount that I had to get done to get ready for the holidays and manage my workload.
But I had been in that state for years and had survived. It was fine. This was fine. It would be fine.
It wasn’t fine.
I didn’t get up for days. When I did, I cried uncontrollably because the exhaustion was unbearable.
My body was done being ignored. It was done being pushed beyond human capability.
If I wasn’t going to listen, it was going to take matters into its own hands.
And boy, did it.
I rested for a few days, not because I wanted to but because I physically had to, and scrambled to get everything done in time for the holidays. Once we were through the New Year, I tried to go right back to it. I tried to work like I hadn’t just shut down mentally and physically.
And again, my body told me no.
I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t go back to it. There was just no way.
Burnout is real. When you operate at “fine” without rest or relief for so long, you go from your version of “fine” (which was never fine) to unable to function in minutes. There is no warning.
Because, if you’re honest, there were tons of warnings. You ignored the warnings.
Don’t be me. Take care of your body.
Founder & CEO at elletwo
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