The hidden signs of burnout: how I found my way back
I got up from my desk and walked across the office to grab a drink from the vending machine. Sudden dizziness hit me like a wave. For a moment, I felt like I was standing on a boat during a rough sea crossing, convinced I was swaying from side to side. I paused at the machine, waiting for the world to stop spinning.
Armed with my drink, I headed back to my desk. There, my colleague and I actually laughed about our heart palpitations, dizziness, brain fog, and total lack of motivation. Then, we went right back to work.
This happened during an incredibly intense period at the company. We were severely understaffed, so we simply absorbed the extra stress. We worked longer hours, skipped lunch breaks, and rushed through our tasks. Looking back, it feels strange how easily I pushed my own mental health and well-being aside just to keep the business afloat.
Every morning began with a deep feeling of dread. By the end of the day, I was so physically and emotionally drained that I could barely find the energy to drive myself home. The bitter truth is that this level of sacrifice is rarely rewarded with bonuses or promotions. Instead, it breeds exhaustion, leading to inevitable mistakes that are then punished.
The warning signs I ignored for years
When you are in the thick of burnout, you become blind to your own suffering. Here are the red flags I ignored for years:
Prioritizing work over basic human needs: Skipping lunches, eating poorly, and even delaying bathroom breaks.
Severe lack of concentration: Finding it impossible to focus on a single task because your brain is overwhelmed by a mountain of moving parts.
Work completely taking over: Having zero energy left for a personal life, which quickly erodes your self-esteem.
A loss of perspective: I distinctly remember a 12-hour workday where I sat thinking about how little value my life had if all I did was work. Life felt sad and pointless.
Irritability: Snapping easily at things that used to leave you perfectly calm.
Physical tension: Keeping your shoulders so tight they practically touch your ears.
Sleep disturbances: Struggling to fall asleep, only to wake up feeling immediately tense and stressed.
Anhedonia: Finding it difficult to feel joy in anything.
The first step: awareness
The hardest part about recognizing burnout is that it often happens in a pack. In corporate environments, entire teams experience this chronic stress together. When everyone around you is drowning, drowning starts to look normal.
Acknowledging the problem is the first step toward changing it. For me, the wake-up call came during a trip to Thailand.
I was staying in Phuket—an absolute paradise—yet I was completely unable to relax. I remember jokingly telling a friend that I was heading to bed to "fight with the duvet for eight hours." In reality, I had spent a vast sum of money on a dream holiday, and burnout was actively ruining it.
Having that time away gave me the space to reflect. I realized that living this way was not normal. I was wasting the best years of my life, and I knew something had to change.
Rewriting the routine
When I returned to the office, the post-holiday blues came with a massive epiphany: No matter how hard I worked, or how much I sacrificed my mental health, the work would never be finished. There was an endless stream of it. Striving for an empty inbox was a losing battle.
I completely shifted my approach using a few practical steps:
Ruthless prioritization: I dedicated the start of every morning to organizing my day. At first, this felt wrong—like I was stealing time from "actual" work—and I had to fight the urge to instantly react to problems.
The to-do list: I used a physical notepad to write down and lock in my daily tasks.
Digital decluttering: I cleared my desktop, sorted my inbox, deleted junk, and filed everything else into clean folders.
Process checklists: In high-pressure, fast-paced environments, mistakes happen. Creating a strict checklist for my cases allowed me to verify my work systematically, restoring my confidence.
Reclaiming my life through self-care
Once my workplace habits shifted, I turned my attention to personal recovery. I realized that self-care wasn't a luxury; it was a medical necessity.
I started taking my full lunch breaks and leaving the office strictly on time. I used my lunches for a walk or a swim. I also signed up for a Couch to 5K running program. The rhythm of my breathing and the physical exertion gave my mind the exact headspace it was craving. I always returned cleaner, lighter, and calmer. I also integrated hypnotherapy relaxation recordings into my routine.
Slowly, bit by bit, I started to feel like myself again.
Self-care strategies to try today
If you are currently feeling the weight of burnout, here are a few ways to start reclaiming your energy:
Establish firm boundaries: Protect your time and learn to say no.
Practice mindfulness: Incorporate meditation or yoga into your week.
Reconnect with nature: Spend time outdoors to ground yourself.
Prioritize rest: Commit to adequate sleep and take regular breaks throughout the day.
Disconnect: Set strict limits on your screen time outside of work hours.
Disclaimer: If you feel overwhelmed and suspect you are suffering from severe burnout, please reach out to a healthcare professional or your GP. There is absolutely no shame in taking medical leave to recover.