Managing Burnout

Tuesday, February 27, 2024

 As we approach the halfway point of this semester, it’s easy to feel burnout and exhaustion from your busy and ever-growing schedule. For your success, it’s important to recognize those signs and to prioritize how to best manage them. 

Signs of Burnout

By definition, burnout is the state of emotional, physical and mental exhaustion caused by excessive and prolonged stress in the professional setting , or in our case — college life. So how do we recognize when we’re experiencing burnout?

Psychological symptoms:

• Reduced performance and productivity
• Anxiety
• Detachment
• Difficulty Concentrating
• Lack of Creativity
• Fatigue
• Loss of purpose
• Frustration
• Absenteeism

Physical Symptoms:

• Exhaustion
• Generalized aches
• Headaches
• Hypertension
• Difficulty sleeping and/or disrupted sleep cycle
• Muscle tension

 

Causes of Burnout

• An overwhelming workload

  • If you feel like your homework is piling up and you can’t seem to make a dent in the load, try assessing how well you’re planning your weekly schedule and prioritizing your work and personal life.

• Perceived lack of control

  • Maybe you feel like you lack access to resources or a real say in how your time is delegated – this sense of lack of control can take a toll on your well-being.

• Community

  • Are the peers around you creating a positive environment for you to seek support and encouragement? Having a community that charges your battery is essential to a healthy state of mind. If that’s something you struggle with, setting personal boundaries could be a good place to start. If you are looking to find your community, check out OSU clubs and organizations on CampusLink!

What do I do to stop feeling burned out?

• Change it up. Try switching up your daily routine. Switching up your “norm” can be refreshing and give you new perspectives!

• Reevaluate. Take a step back and assess the areas in your life that you feel need more attention. Are you able to give the necessary time and effort to all your commitments?

• Reach out. OSU offers several mental health resources that could assist you in navigating this process.

Don’t let the feeling of burnout discourage you or shake your confidence. Honestly, it’s a common feeling as a college student or in the professional work environment and the reality is, we’ll all likely experience it at some point. The good news is — it doesn’t last forever. You’ve got this!