By Nice Speech Lady / November 25, 2018
As health clinicians, there are many demands that set the stage for potential risk of burnout.
This blog post’s purpose is to list the potential related factors of burnout, and how to respond accordingly — so to reduce the risk of falling into physical/mental collapse. Another purpose is for you to find help in order to respond, if you have reached the “burnout point.” Suggestions are offered, and an affirmation to read to oneself is provided for each area. It is recommended that these affirmations be repeated as much as possible. Affirmations have been shown to be particularly helpful in assisting in changes we desire.
Related Factors of Burnout:
• Overwork Patterns. Too large of a load to manage may be contributing to burnout. Taking practical steps to reduce overworking trends may be in order.
Affirmation to repeat in response: “Today, I value __________________. I am thankful for _______________. I recognize that I am overworked, and I recognize that I have the right to a manageable caseload. I recognize that I have the right to a manageable set of tasks. Today, I will problem solve ways in order to simplify my workload. I will streamline processes. I will ask for help to ease my responsibilities. I will feel better with less of a load. I am worth feeling like I have a manageable set of tasks.”
• Stress. Difficulty managing the emotions that come along with a workday or personal life can take its toll. Paired muscle relaxation (flexing/tensing muscles where tension exists, then intentionally relaxing the muscles) and deep breathing can assist with reducing stress. To reduce distress, use of ice/cold items is particularly helpful, such as holding an ice pack on your lap or leg, drinking ice-cold water, or taking deep breaths into the cool night air. This allows us to focus intentionally on the moment, therefore assisting in reducing “fight or flight” responses that come along with stress.
Affirmation to repeat in response: “Today, I value ___________________. I am thankful for ______________. I will seek out ways to be mindful in all that I do. I will intentionally be in ‘the now.’ I will find time to take breaks. I will find time in order to intentionally relax. I will tense and relax my muscles
often in places that my body feels tight. I will breathe deep. I will use ice to calm myself. I will feel better than I have felt. I can feel in the moment. I can enjoy the moment.”
• Insomnia. Lack of sleep can contribute to burnout, and burnout can lead to a lack of sleep. Sleep hygiene patterns may be worth looking into, which may include: reducing electronic screen time after 6 p.m., taking a relaxing bath each evening when “ramping down for bed,” and sipping on a warm drink before heading to bed.
Affirmation to repeat in response: “Today, I value __________________. I am thankful for ______________. I recognize the importance of rest. I recognize the importance of sleep. I know that there are steps I can take in order to improve my sleep. I know that I will find out what will work for me. I need sleep in order to feel energized. I have a right to feel rested. I will allow myself to fully rest at night. I will put my body into a sleep-cycle rhythm that works for me. I will establish sleep hygiene practices to help me in my pursuit of rest. I will be able to sleep.”
• Exhaustion and Fatigue. In the early stages, we may feel a lack of energy and feel tired most days. In the latter stages, we feel physically and emotionally exhausted, drained, and depleted. Failing to rest when it is indicated can contribute to exhaustion and fatigue. It is important to rest when needed. Identifying patterns in sets of days or weeks can be helpful for the realization that insertion of rest is needed.
Affirmation to repeat in response: “Today, I value _________________. I am thankful for _____________. I know that I have come to a place of exhaustion. I have not listened to my body and rested when I needed it in the past. Now, I want to listen to my body. I desire to find balance in work and in my personal life, which includes rest. I will take steps today to rest. I will do what is needed to take care of myself.”
• Loss of Enjoyment and Pleasurable Events. It is important to participate in enjoyable and pleasurable activities to establish emotional and physical balance. Taking time to have fun and participate in joyful tasks may wane during times of burnout.
Affirmation to repeat in response: “Today, I value _________________. I am thankful for _____________. I see the value in pleasurable events. I see how participating in enjoyable activities will assist me in finding balance. Today, I will take time to make plans for doing something pleasurable. I can benefit from enjoyable activities. I will plan on something fun today.”
• Physical Symptoms/Increased Frequency of illnesses. When burnout occurs, it is possible for our immune system to run-down and not effectively protect us from illness. Physical symptoms such as pain in different parts of the body may flare-up, or conditions that are manageable may worsen during times of stress. Receiving the indicated medical treatment is needed, as well as understanding that burnout can contribute to physical symptoms.
Affirmation to repeat in response: “Today, I value _________________. I am thankful for _____________. I realize how I manage my workload can impact my body. I will do what I can to control the factors that I can to reduce my physical symptoms. I may not feel it currently, but I do have health inside of me. I can do what I need in order to take care of myself. I can take whatever steps are needed to manage what my body is saying. I will take care of my body by taking care of myself.”
• Forgetfulness/Inability to Focus. Another factor that is related to burnout can be forgetting important information. Another related issue could involve the inability to focus. Realizing this is an area of difficulty is important in order to know how to respond. Stress or burnout can take up a lot of energy — energy that would be used for memory and focusing attention.
Affirmation to repeat in response: “Today, I value _________________. I am thankful for _____________. I have the innate ability to remember. I have the ability to focus to “take-in” what is needed. I will develop my ability to remember what is important. I will remember what I need to. I can take care of myself in order to pay attention to what is needed in the environment. I will observe the moment. I will be fully present enough to listen. I will be fully present enough to see. I can observe the moment and be fully present. I will function in the workplace adequately to do my job well.”
• Lack of Emotional Resilience. Not being able to manage continued challenges that come your way may be contributing to burnout. Emotional resilience involves being able to adapt to crises that come.
Affirmation to repeat in response: “Today, I value _________________. I am thankful for _____________. I have the ability to manage my challenges. I have the ability to adapt to challenges that come my way. I can become flexible in situations that I find myself in. I have the skills to manage any situation well. Today, I will be able to manage. I have the resolve and resources to adapt.”
• Loss of Motivation. It is easy to feel a sense of waning motivation when we reach a place of feeling burned out. Also, losing our motivation to keep up the pace can be impacted when we are nearing our ceiling stress level. It is important to have a dream, a goal, a reason for moving forward. In Dialectal Behavioral Therapy, it is called defining our “life worth living.”
Affirmation to repeat in response: “Today, I value __________________. I am thankful for ______________. I remember why I am doing what I am doing. I remember that this is all done with my ‘life worth living’ in mind. My dream is big. My dream is worth it. I can achieve my dream if I remember why I pursued this in the first place. I can achieve my goals. I will take little steps each day to achieving them. Today, I can do this.”
• Workaholic-ism. Becoming a workaholic may be a cause of burnout or an outcome of burnout. Either way, society sometimes rewards over-working to the point that it is easy to get caught in this trap. Some employers may also take advantage of a workaholic nature. If we identify as a workaholics, it is important to take a step back and consider its ramifications. Every person has their breaking point. There are ways to break the cycle if we get help.
Affirmation to repeat in response: “Today, I value __________________. I am thankful for ______________. I realize my tendency to throw myself into work. I need balance. I need rest. I need family time. I need time with friends. I can say ‘no’ to new projects if it is above what my limits are. I have the awareness of when to say an additional load is too much. Life is all about balance. I will find it. I will find balance today. I care about myself. I care about my family. I care about my friends. I can say ‘no’ to some things so I can say ‘yes’ to what really matters.'”
• Apathy/Detachment. When burnout takes hold, often apathy arises, which can present itself as a lack of feeling or emotion when typically there would be more excitement, more energy. Sometimes it may present itself as an “I don’t care that I don’t care” perspective. This can sometimes be an alarming thought, and it can be even more alarming if it isn’t alarming in the moment. Even just finding a very simple reason to care about a situation can be helpful to suppress apathy.
Affirmation to repeat in response: “Today, I value __________________. I am thankful for ______________. I care about how things turn out. I care about caring. I want to continue to move forward with feelings that benefit me. I will have excitement when it is warranted. I will keep my resolve to express emotion when it is indicated. I will remain in the moment to express feelings that are needed. I will express myself fully in an effective manner.”
• Feelings of Lack of Accomplishment/Ineffectiveness. Having a sense of discouragement when outcomes do not come our way can be a factor in burnout. It is important to focus on what we have been able to accomplish rather than what we cannot. Remaining in a resolve to keep plugging away, in the context of balance, can lead to outcomes that are desirable.
Affirmation to repeat in response: “Today, I value __________________. I am thankful for ______________. I realize I am not where I want to be yet. That is OK. I can refocus myself. I will regroup myself. I will find ways to be more effective. I will achieve what I desire. I will improve my performance with balance in other areas of my life. I will find ways to mindfully proceed and do what works.”
• Anger Outbursts/Emotional Dysregulation/Irritability. Sometimes, stress and burnout can present itself in emotional dysregulation, which can sometimes look like anger outbursts and irritability. This can be troublesome to experience in the workplace, and can lead to other types of difficulties. It is important to identify when feelings of irritability start to become observed, and then take a break. Identifying irritability when it is at its infancy allows us to know when to respond in ways to calm ourselves before it gets out of control.
Affirmation to repeat in response: “Today, I value __________________. I am thankful for ______________. I will identify when I start to feel irritable. I know how to self-soothe when I start to get angry. I will take measures to not let myself snowball, emotionally. I will identify and speak to a friend when I notice irritability. I will identify and take a break when I notice irritability. I will do something I enjoy to calm myself. I have the ability to help myself cool off. I will do whatever is going to work in my favor, and in the situation.”
• Using Food/Alcohol/Drugs to Cope. When stress and burnout show themselves, it is important to turn to people, activities and mindfulness tasks that assist us in coping healthily. Sometimes, it is easy to turn to food, alcohol or drugs in order to try to cope, and at the same time, this can lead to a host of other problems to have to manage. Using self-soothe techniques, reaching out to the safe people in our lives and finding ways to rest can be choices that will be more effective than mood-altering substances.
Affirmation to repeat in response: “Today, I value __________________. I am thankful for ______________. I will make choices today that will help me. I will turn to things that will be healthy for me. I will avoid compulsive overeating, misuse of alcohol, and drugs. I will find ways to cope that will not cause me more problems. I will focus on what is going to help me today. When I feel despair and need to cope, I will ask for help. I can find ways to take care of myself that benefit me. I can do this. I can take care of myself by choosing ways to self-soothe that will benefit me.”
• Negative Outlook/Perfectionism. When burnout presents itself, it can be an easy and slippery slope to view the workplace with a negative lens. Hints of perfectionism appear and this can be
counterproductive in many cases. It is important to first identify when a negative outlook is occurring. Steering clear of perfectionistic tendencies helps with relationships with ourselves and others.
Affirmation to repeat in response: “Today, I value __________________. I am thankful for ______________. I know that sometimes I have a negative outlook. This doesn’t serve me. I can choose a different way. I can choose to focus on what I can control, which is a positive outlook. I will decide to have an optimistic view. I can control what I choose to focus on. I will choose to focus on things that work for me. Taking care of myself means that I have a state of mind that includes optimism.”
• Withdrawing from Responsibilities. When stress or burnout arises, it is possible to desire to not fulfill the basic requirements of employment. This may present itself as missed time from work, missed deadlines, and paperwork piling up to the point that it appears unmanageable, etc. Making a list of basic responsibilities to meet, and making a goal of meeting each of these tasks daily can be beneficial.
Affirmation to repeat in response: “Today, I value __________________. I am thankful for ______________. I understand that sometimes meeting basic expectations can be a challenge in this season I am in. I would also like to hold up the other side that I can do this. I can make a list of my basic job functions. I will take active steps each day in order to meet these requirements. I can do this. I can fulfill my responsibilities. If I break it down, step by step, I will do this. I can make it, one day at a time, and these days will add up.”
• Cynicism or Pessimism. Having an attitude or feeling of distrust and/or scorn is possible when burnout arises. It is possible to believe that, as a whole, there are more “bad” things vs. “good things” in life. Identifying that this is a point a view is critical in finding ways to question it. Not being able to trust other coworkers will lead to relationship issues in the workplace. Viewing situations as worsening rather than getting better can be discouraging. If we seek out evidence for reasons that there is no hope, it is possible to find it. If we seek out evidence for reasons that there is hope that things will improve, we will also find it.
Affirmation to repeat in response: “Today, I value __________________. I am thankful for ______________. I realize that I have the power to decide what I will focus on. There are things I cannot control. At the same time, I can choose what I will meditate on. What I meditate on will impact what perspectives I take. My perspectives will impact my attitude. My attitude will impact my ability to ‘weigh-in’ on how to respond to choices. The choices I make will impact how my day will flow. There are things I cannot control, and there are things I can. I alone decide what I will focus on, what I meditate on. I alone
decide my perspective, and my attitude. I alone decide my choices. I will make choices that will benefit me. I will take care of myself by choosing wisely. I will do what it takes to approach life in ways that will benefit me.”
• Isolation. It is possible to desire to isolate oneself when burnout and stress present themselves. Isolation comes in the form of physical isolation, relationship isolation, and emotional isolation. Losing a coworker to another job might be a reason to feel isolated, feelings of loss or grief and feeling like we don’t belong in a social circle at work might be contributing factors. Connecting with others through social functions can be helpful, as well as receiving counsel from others who have been there. Finding ways to increase social interactions through technology or clubs, classes, or in learning a new skill can be beneficial. Having a low-maintenance pet can be a helpful way to receive comfort and support in a time of stress. Avoiding spending time alone can assist in decreasing feelings of isolation. Addressing any feelings of anxiety through professional help can also be helpful.
Affirmation to repeat in response: “Today, I value __________________. I am thankful for _______________. There is benefit to spending time with others. I enjoy interacting with others. I will participate fully in interactions with others. I will see the true benefits of reaching out to others. I will be friendly to others. I will show myself friendly. I will put myself out there to get to know others. I will make a new friend today. I will offer a smile. I will see today that there are positives to interacting with others.”
____
Hopefully, some of this information was beneficial to you. If you are experiencing burnout, pleased try some of these affirmations, and take steps every day to address it.
It should be noted that some of these symptoms may be part of a larger presentation of mental illness. It is recommended that if you experience these symptoms, seek help immediately. The National Alliance on MentalI Illness has resources here: https://www.nami.org/Find-Support/NAMI-HelpLine/Top-25-HelpLine- Resources
The EBP principles shared in these affirmations can be found in the related field of psychology. The links to reference for this material include:
https://www.helpguide.org/articles/stress/burnout-prevention-and-recovery.htm
http://www.hsj.gr/medicine/stress-management-techniques-evidencebased-procedures-that-reduce- stress-and-promote-health.php?aid=3429
http://time.com/4306492/boost-emotional-resilience/
Wilson Nice, SLP, is the owner of Nice Speech Lady, a medical SLP platform for functional, practical and evidence-based SLP clinical resources.