\u201cHave a good weekend! I will still do some work before going home. These e-mails cannot wait!\u201d. I said it with a smile, but I could feel how the tension in my back got worse. It was as if someone was tightening a screw there. I had done overtime every day that week. It was close to 18:00 hours Friday night and I still wasn\u2019t done. How often had this happened to me? Too often\u2026<\/p>\n
I had always expected a lot of myself. My self esteem was proportionally related to the number of hours I worked, to the level of satisfaction of my customers and to the respect I received from my colleagues. On the outside, everything was fine. Inside, I was deeply frustrated. I had no idea of what to do! \u201cJust keep on going. It will be OK\u201d, I thought. The pain in my lower back kept getting worse and at the end of the day I often had headaches. At work, people started to avoid me because I got easily impatient and angry. At home I became sullen and withdrawn.<\/p>\n
During a conversation with a good friend I realised that it had already come too far. I was in a burnout and I took 3 months off to recover. \u201cStart with that\u201d, my friend said, \u201cbut perhaps you will need more time\u201d. In the beginning I felt like a failure. I had always been a tower of strength!<\/p>\n
My own inability to share myself with other people was the first issue I needed to address. I had never wanted to need anyone and I was proud of it! For me to learn to accept my feelings and discover my needs I needed help. Someone who could understand me and help me integrate all that was happening. When I found that person to work with it felt very good. With his support I started to unravel and process everything I had pushed away.<\/p>\n
My burnout changed a lot in my life and I can now look back on it and be grateful. It helped me to re-look at who I wanted to be. I changed many dysfunctional habits in my way of thinking and doing. I embraced new ways relating to both myself and others. I started to feel more at home in my body and could breathe freely again. I was in touch with my real self instead of pleasing and fulfilling expectations.<\/p>\n
Eventually I did not go back to my old job. I was done with it. The crisis turned out to be an opportunity to make a new start. To the people I am now working with I can truly say: \u201cI understand how you feel. This is what you can do\u2026\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cHave a good weekend! I will still do some work before going home. These e-mails cannot wait!\u201d. I said it with a smile, but I could feel how the tension in my back got worse. It was as if someone was tightening a screw there. I had done overtime every day that week. It was […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1478,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\n