Knowing how to overcome burnout is critical to your professional life—and working from home is its own kind of monster.
Excessive stress in any workplace can lead to the symptoms of burnout, but it’s even harder to escape when you work from home.
When your office is just steps away, it’s easy for your life to seep into your career, making work all-encompassing and justifiably overwhelming.
Professionals who work from home must take extra care to protect their well-being and save them from a work-centered existence.
If you are experiencing professional burnout, know that you are not alone. This A study indeed reports that 52% of respondents experience burnout, with a higher number reported for remote workers.
Fortunately, there are ways to escape these statistics.
Today we’re going to look at how to overcome burnout when you work from home, with warning signs, risk assessments and steps to achieve a healthier work life.
Signs of workplace burnout
Knowing the warning signs of burnout is important, giving you a chance to address the symptoms before you reach the point of a crash.
Physical symptoms of burnout in the workplace can look like this:
- Persistent headaches
- Lower productivity
- Chronic fatigue
- A common disease
- Stomach pain and GI problems
- Lack of appetite
- Bad sleep
- Use of substance
Mental symptoms can be even more ominous and appear as:
- Bad mood
- Lack of motivation
- Increased cynicism
- A persistent desire to quit
- Emotional exhaustion
- Loneliness, isolation, feeling of separation
- Procrastination
- Powerlessness
You probably won’t experience all of these symptoms, and everyone’s symptoms of stress are different. But several symptoms of burnout can turn into worrisome health problems.
The dangers of work stress
Chronic stress seriously damages your body and mental health.
According to World Health Organizationchronic stress can worsen an existing medical condition such as anxiety or depression.
In addition, he may have long term effects on your physical health:
- Chronic pain: Chronic musculoskeletal pain in the shoulders, neck and head
- Respiratory health: Asthma attacks, hyperventilation, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
- Heart health: Risk of heart disease, hypertension, stroke and heart attack
- Endocrine system: Metabolic disorders such as obesity and diabetes, chronic fatigue and immune disorders
- Nervous system: Constant fight or flight mode triggers physical responses throughout the body
- Gastrointestinal system: Intestinal disease, acid reflux, heartburn, irritable bowel syndrome, stomach pain, flatulence, nausea and vomiting
- Reproductive health: Irregular menstrual cycles, loss of sex drive, difficulty conceiving, worsening premenstrual symptoms and more severe menopausal symptoms
How to overcome burnout when working from home
Recognizing the symptoms is one thing, but dealing with burnout in the workplace is quite another.
Fortunately, there are simple tools to show you how to overcome burnout. Use this post as a checklist to determine which tools will be most beneficial to your well-being.
Take care of your mental health
Mental health is a huge piece of the puzzle when it comes to workplace burnout. This is also where most of the physical symptoms come from.
Above all, make sure you take steps to take care of your brain.
1. Recognize your stressors
Before you can deal with your stressors, you need to understand them.
When you feel like your stress is triggering your entire day, try writing it down in a notebook. When you can identify a stressor, it suddenly detaches from you.
This may help you avoid stressors and burnout future.
2. Find peace throughout the working day
We all feel overwhelmed once in a while.
Manage your stress levels by prioritizing self-care and finding peace with:
- A quick walk
- Calling a friend
- Deep breath
- Time with the pet
- Hot bath
- And whatever else brings you peace
3. Seek professional help
Going to therapy is one of your best tools against being overwhelmed. Psychologists help provide mental health support and give you tools to reduce stress in your everyday life.
Best of all, a good therapist will take some of that stress away for you and remind you that you’re not alone.
Improve your work-life balance
Work-life balance is a real balancing act when working from home.
Separating your professional life from your personal life is easier said than done when you’re always just a few steps away from your laptop.
Clear separation from work can reduce your stress levels, helping you better use your personal time to focus on stress-relieving activities and anything else that brings you joy.
4. Reduce your workload
If you miss your personal life, maybe it’s time to lighten the load.
Consider accepting fewer projects, learn to say noand reduction of working hours. This extra time can help you relax, recharge and regain control.
5. Set fixed working hours
It’s so important to set boundaries when working from home. Keep to fixed working hours and let colleagues know when and where it is convenient to reach you on work matters.
6. Remove app notifications
When you’re getting notifications on your phone all day, every day, it can be hard to resist checking the latest Slack message.
Remove notifications from company emails and other programs that might tempt you to work after hours.
Choose Healthy Coping Mechanisms
We all deal with it in different ways. However, unhealthy coping mechanisms can actually lead you to higher levels of stress.
Healthy coping mechanisms will nourish your body and mind and help you live a more balanced lifestyle.
7. Create a dopamine menu
If scrolling through devices is your main stress reliever, I highly recommend doing a dopamine menu!
These refined menus are a physical reminder of every action that brings you joy, from quick bursts to all-day adventures.
8. Treat physical movement as a reward
Choose physical activities that you enjoy and treat them as rewards rather than obligations.
Yin yoga is an excellent choice, perfect for meditation and mindfulness while engaging in gentle stretches to reduce the stiffness of the office chair.
9. Limit substance use
Many turn to alcohol or marijuana in times of great stress. But overindulgence can lead to worsening health problems that won’t help you in the long run.
Instead, focus on healthy coping mechanisms for true joy.
10. Prioritize a healthy diet
We’ve all been there—trying to pass off a granola bar as lunch during your busy work day.
But making sure you make time for nutrient-dense meals is an important part of fueling your mind and body.
11. Set sleep mode
The symptoms of stress are much worse when we are sleep deprived. Set a sleep pattern that you follow every night for better and more restful sleep.
Create an action plan
When you’re experiencing workplace burnout, motivation can be extremely difficult.
A manageable action plan can take the pressure off and give you small steps towards your ultimate goal.
12. Take it slow
There is a lot of information out there on how to overcome burnout, but trying to do everything at once won’t help.
Try making a few small changes to start with and build from them into big changes.
13. Follow the plan
Motivation is hard to find when you’re experiencing burnout, especially when it’s coupled with depression.
Everyday routine it makes every action a habit and easier to perform.
If you’d like a visual aid, write a daily checklist of manageable tasks each morning; no task is too small to write down.
Rely on your community
External support is an important part of overcoming burnout, leaning on friends, family, co-workers and any other trusted confidants.
14. Tell others
Burnout can be extremely isolating, even more so when you work from home, away from the eyes and ears of colleagues.
It’s always a good idea to tell people you trust about these feelings. In addition to any support they may offer, it can feel good to get it off your chest.
15. Check the benefits of the company
Many companies offer resources to help employees suffering from burnout. Check out your options for free advice, professional support, stress leave and more.
Have a break
There’s a pervasive idea that when you’re struggling, you just have to “get through.” Not only is this hustle culture toxic, it will only prolong your burnout symptoms.
Sometimes the best thing you can do for yourself is to hit pause.
16. Take a vacation
A little relaxation can do wonders for your health.
Take a vacation to help ground your mind. Something in nature is always healing.
17. Take a Sabbatical
There’s no shame in needing a longer break. If possible in your professional situation, consider taking a sabbatical to give yourself a chance to heal your overwhelm.
Practice Self-Compassion
When we feel overwhelmed, it’s easy to get down on ourselves. Remember to treat yourself with understanding, acknowledging your stress rather than fighting it.
18. Realize that healing is not linear
Every day is different. Stress comes and goes. But every step you take in healing is a step toward a happier, more fulfilled life.
Consider your position
When it comes down to it, you may need to consider your professional role. Ask yourself:
- “Is this a job for me?”
- “Is this workplace toxic?”
- “Is it possible to reduce workplace stress in this position?”
19. Put yourself in a different role
You may need to take on a different role to reduce your stress levels.
Consider which roles on offer best suit your work style, which tasks you really enjoy and which parts of your career you’d rather leave.
20. Select Exit
Sometimes recovering from burnout means leaving your position altogether.
This decision should not be made hastily. However, if your workplace is harming your well-being, it may be time to look for a new one, low stress opportunities.
Recap: How to Overcome Burnout When You Work From Home
Professional burnout is no fun, it comes with a number of psychological and physical symptoms that do not lead to a fulfilling lifestyle.
It’s easy to lose the joy in the hustle and bustle. Remember to take care of yourself and prioritize your well-being over your professional goals.
Your future self will thank you!
