How do you Recover from Burnout when everything feels like Chaos?
Before we even get to work, consider everything already running in the background:
Taxiing kids to school and sports- Shopping and managing the home
- Preparing breakfast, lunch and dinners
- Endless cleaning and washing
- House maintenance and unfinished jobs
- Paying the bills
- Managing the wellbeing of children
- Navigating the constant push and pull of relationships
At this point, work can actually feel like the easier job. And self-care? Who has time for that?
This isn’t laziness. This isn’t weakness.
This is the weight of a life designed around everyone else’s needs — and it’s not sustainable.
Recovery from Burnout starts with one question…
Why are we giving everyone outside our home the best of us — and saving the scraps for the people who matter most?
It’s a question you may have already asked yourself.
Every morning, we head out the door switched on, capable, and ready.
We show up for colleagues, clients, and commitments with energy, presence, and patience.
But by the time we walk back through our own front door?
That’s when the internal notification kicks in.
Battery low.
10% remaining.
Switch to low power mode.
And just like a phone, most of us either ignore it, keep operating — or simply shut down.
It’s not intentional. It’s a form of survival.
The Burnout Fog We Are Living In
Author Linda Kavelin Popov, i
n A Pace of Grace – The Virtues of a Sustainable Life, describes it perfectly:
“The complex world we have created has given us the environment for overstimulation… It has never been more challenging to create sustainable ways to live happier, healthier lives.”
She calls it the FOG Syndrome — Fatigue, Overwhelm, and Guilt.
If you’ve felt all three, you know exactly what she means. It can be a very lonely and isolating feeling.
Many of us have quietly become what she calls the
E-Type personality — Everything to Everybody.
We give, and give, and give — until there’s nothing left to give to ourselves.
And somewhere along the way, how we use our time starts to fray the very values we hold most dear.
Something Has to Change – but What?
Have you asked yourself how sustainable your current pace of life is?
Same motions. Different day. Day in, day out. Year in, year out.
Waiting for things to “settle down” or “once this (insert life event here) is over”
Fearing something will eventually break — and the terrifying part is what.
You can’t risk work. That’s what brings in the income.
So is it the relationship with your kids? Your partner? Your physical health? Your mental health?
When you look at where you are right now versus where you want to be, the gap can feel overwhelming — and even the starting point can feel impossible to find.
I know this feeling because I’ve been there.
3 Steps to Get Started & Recover from Burnout
How can you cultivate energy that is perpetually self-sufficient?
Energy that gives you and your loved ones the best of you, not just the rest of you.
I can tell you this: There’s no magic pill 💊 and no overnight formula 🪄
However; it is possible. Very possible. And it takes a little time and a generous dose of kindness toward yourself.
Here’s where to begin:
Step 1. Make the decision to change.
It all starts with you making a decision. A single powerful decision for you to do something different. Only you can make this decision nobody else can give you this.
If your current pace is working — carry on. But if you’re constantly running on empty – today as you read these words only you can make the decision right now to do something different.
Make a declaration of your decision to the people in your life. Put your name to it with confidence. Don’t use the fear of failure to sabotage you at the start line.
Announce it to the people who matter in your life. There is a good chance they are part of the reason you want to make this change.
Step 2. Connect that decision to a strong reason.
Ask yourself – Why? A surface-level answer won’t sustain you. You need to dig deeper. What’s your real anchor? What’s at stake if nothing changes? A powerful reason becomes the fuel for lasting change.
Start by writing down your Why. Ask yourself ‘Why do I want to stop living at this pace?’ Then look at the words you have written and ask yourself – ‘Why is this important to me?’ Write it down.
Now repeat this with your second answer. Look again at the words you have written down and ask yourself – ‘Why is this important to me?’ Write it down.
Stick with it as you repeat this question at least three more times. Let the deeper reasons come up. You will feel it wholeheartedly. You will know when you have found your anchor.
Something far more important to you than the first reason you gave yourself. Something bigger which you can anchor to.
Step 3. Cultivate one new behaviour — as your future self.
Remember this is your start line. You already have everything you need to know to get your started. You have also made the commitment to yourself to do things differently.
No need to overhaul anything. No dramatic life makeover. You are starting with just one thing you can do differently today.
Focus on an area of your life that needs the nurture. Is it your body? your mind? time with loved ones? time to self?
The key is to make it small and achievable and in a short timeframe.
Most importantly – make it a promise to yourself. Label it a ‘Top Priority’ make it ‘Non-negotiable’
Some examples can be:
- Take the dog for a walk once a week
- Drink a big warm cup of herbal tea first thing in the morning to hydrate
- Read in a quite room for half an hour once a week
- Take a break outdoors during at least one lunch break
Why so small? Because it’s about small consistent wins. It is consistency that drives new behaviours which become the shifts for change.
You literally start creating a new baseline which becomes the building blocks to the person you’re becoming.
A Life Worth Living
Having experienced the full spectrum of burnout, overwhelm and stress over many years as a mother, daughter, partner and business owner; I knew something had to change.
I committed to studying and learning about our habits and psychology when it comes to finding true balance in life. This lead me to helping many others transform their own lives.
Cultivating a sustainable level of energy — all day, every day — has allowed me to live with a Pace of Grace.
Most days I am energised, full of beans, sleeping like a log, and living a genuinely joyous life.
The occasional days my battery is drained and I’m not feeling ‘at my best’ I simply go back to being kind on myself (without guilt) knowing tomorrow is a fresh new day and this moment will pass.
…and some days I feel like I’m simply levitating — floating gently through the day, battery charged, giving the best of me to everyone I love.
Now that’s is a life worth living!
Want more?
Have you made a commitment to recover from burnout once and for all?
Would you love to start the journey together?
You can access the full video recording of this article and more.
I invite you to join the Free Sitrus Membership and access all the benefits to start building energy that actually lasts.
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All the images you see have been created with Ai – Integrity is the virtue of being honest, ethical, and having strong moral principles which are consistently upheld, even when no one is watching.
At Sitrus, we believe lasting change begins with self-awareness and is built through small, sustainable steps — not radical overhauls. If this resonated with you, you’re in exactly the right place.