When good stress goes bad

Stress is a natural part of life, it motives us and can be a catalyst for growth and change. But when stress becomes excessive and prolonged, it can lead to burnout—a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion that affects so many aspects of our lives, including work, parenting, and volunteering.

For me, the journey into understanding burnout has begun with a gradual realization that something feels off… the excitement I once felt for my passions and responsibilities has waned, and has been replaced by a sense of heaviness and fatigue. Many things feel like a struggle lately, and the spark that once fuelled my pursuits seemed to have dimmed. You may be able to relate to going through something similar in your life. 

Over the past 2.5 years, I've embarked on a personal healing journey—a journey that has brought me face-to-face with the realities of burnout and the importance of self-awareness.

Through a lot of therapy and hard reflection, I've learned to better sit with my emotions, asking myself tough questions and paying closer attention to my thoughts, beliefs, feelings, and behaviors. 

But as we know, healing isn't always linear and I have more questions than answers right now. There's a tendency to rush back to the familiar, to sweep our struggles under the rug to feel normal again, even if normal is painful. I've found myself tempted to add chaos to my life, using busyness and distraction to cope as I have in the past. 

Yet, amidst the chaos, a new perspective has emerged for me—a growing desire for a life that offers freedom, fulfillment, and balance. My goals have shifted, and I find myself drawn to examining how my life can better support well-being and purpose over traditional notions of success. How exactly that looks is to be determined.

Just know that if you too, are feeling overwhelmed or burnout, it's ok to not have the answers, slow down enough to tune into your feelings and begin to consider how you may be able to realign. 

In this new era, burnout is no longer seen as a badge of honor but as a warning sign—a signal that something needs to change. As we strive for lives that are rich and meaningful, I think it's essential to cultivate self-awareness, set boundaries, and prioritize self-care. By embracing these principles, I believe we can navigate burnout with grace and resilience, maybe even finding renewal in the process. I will keep you up to date on how this is going for me. If you need help navigating your own feelings of burnout, know you can intervene before you hit rock bottom. 

~ Laura, Clinical Therapist
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