Bev is an anxiety and mental health expert. Here’s how she deals with burnout

Bev Aisbett knows more than most about burnout. She is an anxiety and mental health expert, as well as the author of The Book of Burnout: What It Is, Why It Happens, Who Gets It and How to Stop It Before It Stops You!

Yet while she was penning her latest book, Aisbett decided to open a gallery. The stress and exhaustion of juggling two huge projects soon took its toll. Feeling overwhelmed and run down, she started having trouble sleeping. Her mind constantly raced and she began making “silly mistakes” at work. She also struggled to do things that normally came easily.

Aisbett realised she was burnt out. While the term “burnout” is often bandied about light-heartedly, Aisbett says it’s no laughing matter. Its effects can “impact every area of your life and leave you depleted in every way”.

Burnout has been recognised by the World Health Organisation as an occupational phenomenon that can lead to interaction with health services. It’s characterised by “feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion”; “increased mental distance from one’s job” (or feeling negative or cynical about it); and “reduced personal efficacy”.

When hearing the term “burnout”, you might picture someone collapsed in a heap. But Aisbett explains that it exists on a spectrum. So if you’re overwhelmed but still functioning, you might be in its early stages.

When Aisbett felt herself veering into burnout, she did something her type-A personality never thought possible: she asked for an extension for her book’s deadline.

In doing so, she discovered something “amazing”: the world didn’t fall apart when she failed to honour a commitment.

Since then, Aisbett has been proactive about taking steps to ensure she doesn’t burn out again. For her, that’s meant embracing a slower pace of living.

If you feel yourself teetering on the edge of burnout, or realise you’re starting to drown in it, Aisbett says it’s time to be honest with yourself about the way things are going.

You may be slogging away to save for a much-wanted holiday, for example. But if you grind yourself to the bone in the process, Aisbett says you’re likely to be too worn out to appreciate the break when it comes.

“There’s a lot of investment in the future and the future just has no guarantees, as we can see,” she says. “So you might be killing yourself in the present to reach some ideal that isn’t going to eventuate, either because you’ll be too ill or life can get in the way. It’s also important to be very honest with yourself: is this really worth it?”

In the current cost-of-living crisis, some are burning out just to make ends meet. Taking a step back to see what tweaks can be made to lighten your load can help, says Aisbett.

“It’s crucially important to appreciate the present and do the things that you enjoy,” she says, “as well as the things that you must do, and finding that balance.”

Putting your own wellbeing at the top of your priority list is also key. That might involve minimising your to-do list, curbing your tendency towards perfectionism or accepting that you might not be able to do everything you said you would. Says Aisbett, “Learn to know when you’ve reached a point where you’ve achieved what you can do, and let the rest go.”

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