So, last week I went to an amazing gathering of fellow campaigners in London where I attended various workshops on social justice, innovative projects, building social and environmental movements etc.
The workshop that stood out to me the most was one on burnout and stress- how to identify it and build resilience to it. When campaigning, heading towards burnout can go unnoticed and this workshop has really opened my eyes to things I hadn't realized were leading to burnout even though it is clear that they are. Therefore, I will try to summarize what I learnt here as I believe it can be very helpful not only to campaigners and activists but anyone in any circumstance.
At the start of the workshop, we defined burnout as the point where you are unable to continue with your usual work (may experience symptoms of those similar to depression or anxiety). Where you have reached the point where even everyday activities seem unbearable and you have to spend a significant amount of time to recover. This could be different depending on your situation, may take days, weeks or even months if not years to recover so preventing it from happening is crucial. To check if you are, or are in threat of burning out taking this quiz could be a good indicator:
Drivers of burnout
There are 5 main drivers that lead to burnout, ideals that you are making yourself reach. They may seem like positive goals in some cases, but often come from a very negative place, are impossible to actually achieve and nobody expects anyone to have these traits all the time. They are:
1) Try hard
2) Be perfect
3) Be pleasing
4) Be strong
5) Hurry up
We often feel like we should be doing all of these and when we fail at any we beat ourselves up about it. We say that we're not trying hard enough, that time is running out like this is the time we should be doing everything because we have free time, energy, the conditions are optimal etc. But again we have to realize that there is time, we shouldn't push ourselves too hard and we should be setting realistic goals, not striving for perfection that is unattainable or we will end up burning out.
The next step in the workshop was to rate each of the drivers in relation to each other in terms of which ones were more applicable to you. This was done by drawing a bar chart where each driver was a different bar and the ones that affected you the most were larger than the ones that affected you less. (Please do this before moving on to the next part)
Now ask yourself these questions:
In what ways do the ones you rated highly operate in your life?
What effect do they have on your wok or social life?
How might they contribute to burnout?
Do you notice giving these kind of messages to others? (For example, telling someone to be strong in situations where they should be able to show their weakness, by expressing emotions and not bottling them up.)
Exploring causes of burnout
Causes of burnout can be split into 4 categories:
1) Personal context.
Your circumstances that affect you in various ways such as living at home or away form home, living with a disability etc. For example, being part of an active society where you feel like you need to be part of everything, to make full use of the situation you are in.
2) Personal values.
This could include those drivers we mentioned previously, also other values that can cause strain such as putting others needs first, being there for others at your own expense.
3) Wider geo-social context.
Things like climate change and social injustices that can effect you as an activist as you feel the constant need to fight against them. Also, pressures to find work, a partner. Moreover, feeling guilt for being in a position of privilege which gives you opportunities to do more and you feel like you are not doing enough.
4) Daily responsibilities.
Everyday jobs such as paying bills, rent, self-care, keeping in touch with friends and family, maintaining your name in your social circle or on social media.
All of these things put pressure on you to try and do too much of everything which can be detrimental to your well-being. When looking at the causes of burnout it is important to understand whether it is a choice to let them affect you whether you cannot help them affecting you and how they are affecting you. Understanding that all of these things can and do affect you on a deeper level is the first step to building resilience to those effects.
Building resilience
Roots and fruits of resilience - what helps you to build resilience to burnout, where you get your strength and what the benefits are that you get.
Roots:
Letting go of negative thoughts, having a space to go to think (ex. nature), being realistic about time and energy, accepting yourself as you do others, recognizing your thoughts, close contact with loved ones, achievable targets, communal cooking, taking responsibility for your own well-being, meditation... Add your own ;)
Letting go of negative thoughts, having a space to go to think (ex. nature), being realistic about time and energy, accepting yourself as you do others, recognizing your thoughts, close contact with loved ones, achievable targets, communal cooking, taking responsibility for your own well-being, meditation... Add your own ;)
Fruits:
Health (physical and mental), self-awareness, confidence, self-belief, sense of direction, clarity, feeling whole, better sleep, better attitude, being understood...
Decompression
1) What things help you leave work behind, unwind and help you prepare yourself for a different part of your life?
2) What things do you do or not do presently which impede your making this transition?
3) What are some other possibilities that you haven't tried?
4) What will you make a commitment to yourself to do in the next week?
So there you have it, hope this was helpful and please do comment anything else that comes to mind be it examples of causes, strategies to prevent burnout or any other ideas. Thanks for reading. :)
