I often hear or read the word burnout bandied around for the wrong reasons and it really annoys me (and that's putting it midly!). No, you do not "do a little" burnout and no a week of holidays does not set you right.

Here are the actual signs that can help you know where you are at:

Beyond everyday stress

You are getting busier and busier, thinking about work most of the time, using coffee, snacks or other stimulants to help you to keep going. You are not in burnout.

Entering hyperstress

You are starting to feel drained, overwhelmed, you may have trouble focusing or concentrating or be snapping at people, feeling anxious or tearful. You start to wake up earlier and earlier with your to-do list going round in your head. This is dangerous, you need time off and to see a burnout specialist because you are approaching burnout very fast but, no this is not burnout yet.

Collapsing into BURNOUT = This is it!

Then one day, you have reached your limits, you collapse. You are suddenly unable to function properly from one moment to the next and you cannot recover in months. You experience constant fatigue, panic attacks, constant brain fog, acute pain.

You need many months to recover from burnout and that is in the best-case scenario, if you are geting the right kind of help.

So, do not wait until you collapse, react while it is still time: slow down, take a break, go on a holiday, learn to fuction properly and to manage your stress.

This is to help you with this that I created La Bulle de Repos. If you are not certain where you stand, take our burnout quiz!