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Burnout and its consequences have been discussed, written about many times and there are also documentaries following individual stories of burnout sufferers. It is usually linked to work related stress but more and more specialists agree that it can affect any area of life - from home stay mothers, students to middle aged carers of elderly parents. What contributes to the complexity of burnout is the variety of symptoms - headache, stomach ache, fatigue, getting sick more often, feeling depressed, disengagement at the work place, irritability, increased aggressiveness but also its causes. If it was only about stress it would be relatively easy - people would be working on reducing stress triggers, learning relaxation methods and practicing mindfulness. Often, when we dig deeper we find out that contributing factors are also toxic atmosphere at workplace, prevailing negativity, clash between personal values and that of the company, lack of supporting network in general, overload, unrealistic expectations from oneself and others, one sided investment of focus and energy etc. Let´s have a look at a few tips that should help prevent burnout or be used on a recovery journey: Practice self-care. Common pitfall - I do not have time. It does not necessarily mean, you need to have hours on your own or leave on a wellness retreat. Take 10-15 min. every day for gratitude practice (writing down 1-3 things that made you smile, hopeful, feeling lighter). Alternatively follow guided visualisation, body - scan exercise or breathing techniques. Write down how you spend your time. Use a scale from 1-10 (10 being the highest satisfaction mark). Evaluate how you feel about the activities, tasks, people, environment etc. This helps you to eliminate the "low energy" investments. Ask for help. Common pitfall - you are not able to admit to yourself that you actually need help. This often comes from our childhood and rather strict upbringing when vulnerability, physical fatigue, lack of motivation were labeled as "not good" and endurance for whatever cost was praised and rewarded. What you can do is to imagine you talk to yourself as you would be talking to your best friend in a similar situation. What would be your words? Your tone of voice, gestures? Gently tell yourself that you can say no, you can delegate, you can outsource and you can ask for a helping hand. Maintain social life/connection. Common pitfalls - you do not feel like meeting people, you have impression that people around you do not have problems and lead super easy and interesting life. Limit social media usage - in virtual life everything seems better than what you are living at the moment, especially when you are in difficulties. Be in contact at least with one close friend even if it is only over the phone. If you do not trust people close to you, find a trustworthy mentor or pastor. Go for a cup of coffee in a nice local corner cafe, small talk with strangers sometimes makes wonders. Use self help resources. Common pitfalls - there is nothing new out there, I have zero energy to read a book or a self-help guide. Try short audio podcasts, install a meditation app, follow therapists online - there is a lot of free helpful staff out there, you do not need to read a 200 page long book. Reach for professional help. Common pitfalls - medication is enough, I am not ready for a long therapy, it will cost me a fortune. Opting for antidepressants or sleeping pills is sometimes necessary, however it should be rather short term solution and accompanied with some kind of support. It does not necessarily need to be a psychiatrist or psychologist, although if you already have clues that it may be connected with clinical depression occurring in the family, childhood trauma, it is probably very wise to do so. You feel more comfortable with a life coach, find one near to you and give it a go. Do you have a lot of physiological symptoms, such as inexplicable pain issues, headaches, muscle spasms in jaw, shoulder, lower back, upset stomach, you feel like you have an obstacle in your throat? Look out for body-mind therapy, yoga classes, breath work classes. Therapy is always an investment, but why to invest into clothing, personal fitness trainer, beauty rituals, body massage and not into therapy? Although many popular articles suggest that keeping a healthy sleeping routine, eating healthy food, practicing sports and being surrounded by loved ones help navigating throughout burnout and its aftermath, it is often very hard to establish these routines and rely on family once we are in a spiral of self-doubt, fatigue, uselessness, overthinking, feelings of guilt and failure. Therefore, it is better to practice the above mentioned steps when we are relatively fine. Maybe colleagues are often sick, one or two already had burn out, or there is not much joy around you. Or you are a carer of an ill person or elderly relative and you often feel alone. Stay home parent and feeling often angry or frustrated with the child and the whole situation? No time for yourself? Pay attention to these red flags and establish preventive measures or reach out for help. More than four out of ten workers (44 percent) in the EU say that their work stress has increased as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a survey by the EU's agency for safety and health at work, EU-OSHA. Parental burnout increased also dramatically worldwide during the pandemic. You are definitely not alone.

Walking is the most natural way of moving, something we used to practice on regular basis only a few decades ago, when life was slower, when we relied on our legs more than on our cars. We used to go to local shops on foot, children to school and adults who used public transport had fair amount of walking from and to a bus stop. I remember my grandma having had a very simple bicycle that she used to go downhill to the small city centre and going home while pushing the bicycle uphill. Times changed and so our ways of living and our habits. Maybe you are a sportsperson and you think walking is boring, or that you will not burn enough calories. Maybe you are not a sportsperson but still you do not see what the walking can bring to your life, except that you will need to find time for it in your busy schedule. Here are 7 reasons why you should consider introducing walking routine in your life: Yes, walking takes time. Precisely for this reason it is and excellent means to take time for YOURSELF. Emails can wait, kids can wait, partner can wait, tidying up or cooking can wait. You decide how much time you dedicate to yourself. You will learn to give yourself a priority and that is a powerful tool. When you walk, you move. Moving is life. It may seem banal but consider that throughout your life it is not guaranteed you will always be in your best shape - either because of poor health, injury, ageing. Having walking routine as a natural part of your daily life gives you security and sense of agency. I am walking, I am alive, I am heading forward. Walking outside provides you with fresh air. Oxygen is important for your brain health and its function, so if you take a walk during lunch break, your performance in the office improves in the afternoon. Walking helps to be aware of your breathing. We tend to breath shallowly but when walking we naturally align our breath with our pace. This helps us increase oxygenation, reduce heart rate, relax and even reduce anxiety. We improve the elasticity of our lungs which is a great preventive measure as we age. Walking clears your head, literally. Had a fight - walk, feeling sad - walk, cannot take important decision - walk. Increased blood flow to the brain stimulates the release of endorphins, which boosts our mood. Walking boosts our concentration and memory. Not only it stimulates the production of chemicals that affect the growth of new blood vessels in the brain, but we can practice observation skills. Look at your surroundings carefully and try to remember details - of people you saw, number of stairs you walked etc. Last but not least, walking enables creativity. Your mind gets rid of superfluous and is able to "produce" new solutions, new ideas. Mind you, the idea for this blog post was born on my regular walk. Have a good pair of comfortable shoes, pay attention to your posture - keep your shoulders down. Do not set up time goals, do not measure steps, just walk. Try not to distract yourself with listening to music, calling a friend, scrolling your Facebook or Instagram. You might like to walk with a friend and that is an excellent and healthy pass time. However, to make the most of the above mentioned benefits, find also time to walk on your own. You might have a certain apprehension of being alone, spending time in silence, yet it is in silence your innermost needs, values, dreams could be heard.

How many times have you not tried - dancing tango, writing a short story, drawing or painting, going to a party you were invited to but knew only the host or just eating alone in a restaurant? Instead you told yourself that it would be boring, that you were tired anyway, that you needed to finish a work project or that your kids were still small or that you would be surely the worst one in that activity and weirdo in that restaurant. If you listened carefully to your emotions in the first place - when you were considering to try, to go for the experience maybe you would feel your fear talking you out of trying. Fear of what? Fear would be justified if there was a shooting in the street at that moment, or strong wind and weather alert or you had a broken leg and it was slippery outside. Or your kids were down with fever and needed you. But if there was none reasonable obstacle, then the fear came probably from the past and most probably from your childhood. In our childhood most of us were compared - either with our siblings or classmates or both. Usually in the context of looking at someone who is doing better, trying better, focusing better, making more effort - the list is endless. Some of us maybe had fantastic parents who never compared us with others but we were raised in generally competitive environment. We compared ourselves, which is also a natural thing to do but nobody told us that the benchmark should be us, to do better than yesterday but not because our friend was fast forward in everything. This created a fear of failure. Our wounds also come from the things we did not receive when we should have - including comforting advice, words of acceptance and encouragement. We live in a world that is presented in media or social media either as a total catastrophe and apocalypse or as a flawless paradise. When we are tired of illnesses, wars, killings and natural disasters in the news we lean towards the images of perfect people with great careers and accidentally also very beautiful, who spend their whole life in nice places sipping champagne or having cappuccinos with cakes. If they do not have a gorgeous family then they are single but happily single and adventurous. We of course wonder and doubt and despair - we will never be so perfect. Acknowledging that our fears come from the past and have little to do with the present situation is the first step towards conscious living. To be aware of what we are served by media and also how we choose what we see and how that affects us helps us to make better choices for tomorrows. Maybe instead of chasing away the fear by finding excuses , we can start slowly exploring our capabilities. We may imagine we are children who try almost everything and they enjoy it - until somebody starts to evaluate them. Instead of grabbing the phone or the remote from TV we can grab that pen, water colours, the party dress and courage to eat alone. Maybe it will be not a perfect story, picture, party or dinner but it will be our best in that moment. Living our life with this in mind is not only healthy but also liberating.