As a designer, I’ve experienced burnout several times throughout my career, and I’ve come to realise that it’s unreasonable during these times to look for a cure without first addressing the symptoms. Solving the problem of burnout requires us to be level-headed and productive. Something that’s difficult when all your mind can think about is the pain.

Before limping to a burnout hospital, it pays to spend a few minutes giving yourself burnout first aid.

1. Communicate to your body that it’s safe.

Our ancient brains tend to interpret everyday anxieties as physical threats.

When we think of that big deadline, our sympathetic nervous systems react by giving us the jitters, elevating our blood pressure, and placing us into a pseudo-state of fight-or-flight. While this reaction is good for physical threats, it can be self-destructive against workplace anxieties that can stay with us after we’ve finished work or even when we’re trying to sleep.

While it’s impossible for us to control our physiological responses, their impact can be mitigated to a surprising extent by simply signaling to our bodies that we’re safe (eliciting a relaxation response):

• Take some deep, slow breaths.
• Move far away from your work desk or laptop — anything that your brain associates with workplace anxieties.
• Get off your feet – lounge or lie down.
• Engage in chit-chat. Talk to someone about something unimportant.
• Laugh or have a chuckle.

These don’t require a large commitment of time or effort and can be combined into a single activity. For example, getting away from your desk and chatting with a work friend on a sofa or break-out area where you can lean back or put your feet up.

Incorporating one or more of these techniques into a coffee break or post-work activity can help de-stress you and trick your brain into lowering your threat response level.

2. Recognise how you’re feeling.

When you get home and you try to block out thoughts about work, don’t make the mistake of ignoring the way you feel. You’re burning out and feeling a whole range of emotions. These anxieties are all very real and studies show that simply acknowledging them can help alleviate their impact.

Try to think about how you’re feeling while sidelining thoughts around work itself, making plans, problem-solving, or reasoning why things have happened.

Reflect on your state of being and answer these three questions:

• What emotions am I feeling right now?
• What are my thoughts on all this?
• How is the way I’m feeling, changing the way I would normally behave today?

Take time to really think about your answers to these questions. The easiest way to do this is to journal, but if you’d prefer to chat to someone about it instead, make sure the person is receptive and able to keep the discussion focussed on your feelings and not the work itself or coming up with solutions. Alternatively, you can talk to a pet or pot plant about it. Sounds a bit crazy but you’ll find they’re amazing listeners.

3. Do something.

You’re not tired, you’re frustrated.

Burning out is often associated with physical exhaustion, but it’s really a state of emotional exhaustion or frustration. Relaxing or sitting around doing nothing isn’t necessarily going to help improve the way you feel.

Light physical activity like cleaning or walking can do wonders for your mental wellbeing and release any unwanted thoughts or frustrations. It can also be directed into doing productive things, which can help make the rest of your week easier or give you a well-needed morale boost.

• Exercise.
• Cook something new.
• Tidy the house, or clear out the closet.
• Reach out to someone you haven’t spoken to in a while.
• Iron some shirts or do a chore you’ve been putting off.

The other definition of a ‘burnout’ — when a car spins its wheels while stationary, causing its tyres to smoke — is an apt metaphor for this sort of situation. Slamming on the brakes and trying to stay still may just be causing a lot of smoke, when the best thing to do is to find the right direction to point your car in and let it go.