Burnout Recovery: Discovering Joy Again
When you're exiting the throes of burnout, you may feel this feeling of: I know life can be good but it is just not that right now. You're resting but still experiencing the side effects on your body and mind caused by chronic stress and overwhelm. These dense, heavy feelings and pain make it hard to cultivate the joy we need to continue on - to make it through each day.
Here are three actionable way you can rewire your brain to see the joy in life again
Start small by consciously identifying things in your life that bring you even the slightest amount of joy.
You might find you really love the way the wind feels against your face, or a vast blue sky on a cloudless day. Or maybe your joy comes from listening to the latest episode of your favorite podcast. Whatever it is - Take a mental (even better if physical) note of these things.
Finding these little bits of joys shows your brain that, even amongst the difficult parts of your daily life, not everything is "bad".
Give yourself something to look forward to, and put a date on it.
Otherwise life can feel life an endless slog with the days repeating all the same. Soon, the year goes by, and you wonder where it went. Giving yourself things to look forward to helps with this.
It could be something like going to an arcade or treating yourself to some other sort of experience.
My go-tos are visiting nature parks and natural bodies of water. Being in nature really allows you to detach from the overwhelm of everyday life.
If being outside isn't your thing, or the weather doesn't permit it, set aside a chunk of time for yourself to shamelessly pursue something that only benefits yourself - whether it be play a video-game, watching a bad reality show, researching a topic of interest, or starting a creative project.
Soon I'm going to do this for myself. As it get colds, all the natural water areas around me are closing. My "something to look forward to" is learning Coptic book binding.
Do things that brought you joy as a child, or give yourself experiences that would have made child-you extremely thrilled.
This could be something as simple as coloring or watching a show you enjoyed as a kid.
A real-life example; My partner, Zephyr really loved dinosaurs as a kid. When the local science and history museum had a special dinosaur exhibit on display, we chose a day, and put it on the calendar as a concrete thing we'd do. And he had a blast!
And, if can't come up with anything, this is an opportunity to explore what topics and experiences pique your curiosity. Follow that thread of curiosity until it is no longer there. It's okay to explore things and find out that they're not for you.
Life can be hard - There's no getting past that. Burnout recovery makes everything even more difficult. But, there are still really wonderful things about being alive. Sometimes, we just need some time, and a bit of help, to figure that out - To figure what brings us joy, even for the smallest moment.
The small moments of joy also help demonstrate to your body and mind that you are safe to experience good feelings.
My name is Sly Stark - I've been an assistant to ADHD-ers since 2022.
If you're an ADHD-er recovering from burnout, I invite you to skim through my channel and see if there are any nuggets of wisdom that will lead you to living a happier, more fulfilling life. Because that's what I want you for, and that's what you deserve.
See you again soon.
