Why we burn out and how to get the balance back

One of the emerging trends post-covid is the rapidly increasing number of people, especially women, who have started to question and reject the grind culture of consistently overworking and the acceptance that life has to be a struggle, and not being able to have a good work-life balance is a fact of life. Our productivity-obsessed culture is creating stress, anxiety and burnout and impacting our wellbeing. 

Worryingly, women have become resilient and accustomed to meeting ever more increasing demands at work and at home. Even repeated cycles of burnout can start to become the norm. During my research for this piece it is clear that burnout is much more than what is going on at work. It is about the deeply ingrained resistance to establishing the right work-life balance for that individual because of the fear of being accused of quiet-quitting, the full rigours of capitalism, the interplay of the gender pay gap and the prohibitive childcare costs. In 2022 the UK was the most expensive country for childcare across the developed world. This combined with less than generous maternity pay, layers of sexism, misogyny, racism, the rising cost of living, money worries leads to relationship issues feeding stress and anxiety. 

This stark reality has led to many women wanting more than the old-style career break as the pressures when they return to work remain the same. Intermittent breaks and perhaps even more flexible working patterns do not seem to be supporting a healthy lifestyle, many have felt pushed into leaving their jobs altogether or changing careers leading to the “Great Resignation“ phenomenon. In fact what people want is to create a new way of living that truly embraces a good work life balance and that prioritises their wellbeing over their productivity. Moreover, there is a clear understanding that wellbeing leads to more efficiency and productivity. 

The new post-pandemic epidemic to do more, be more, have more is relentlessly pulling  people in so many different directions and in some cases people are experiencing Dis-ease, a state of disharmony and even feeling disconnected from their true selves and feelings, which can lead to feeling trapped in situations they don’t really want. 

Increasingly people are finding the courage and integrity and choosing to live more consciously, purposefully and intentionally in alignment with their values and beliefs. This has led to some women recognising that they have a choice and can try and set proper work boundaries, and establish wellness routines which support sustainable work-life balance. By committing to a holistic integrative approach in which the physical, emotional and spiritual practices combine, this increases occupational wellbeing and develops resilience in the workplace. 

One of the biggest challenges mitigating against health and wellness is the lack of awareness of accessible practices that will sustain health. The ever increasing number of health and wellness fads and trends promising a quick fix is confusing and can be demoralising as health hacks have shown that these are not likely to lead to long lasting wellness. Committing to a daily wellness routine starting small in true Ayurvedic fashion and increasing the practices over time can lead to a healthier and happier future because of the incremental impact and the body and brains ability to adapt to a new routine.

Download my Top Tips for Wellness here and start making the changing you need to get a better balance back.

Notes on the Author:

Augustina Tetsola worked as a Criminal Lawyer for over 20 years where she experienced first-hand some of the challenges shared in this article. Augustina took an early redundancy package and now works as an Integrated Trauma informed Coach to support trauma recovery and healing. She specialises in divorce, life and business coaching and trains other coaches. Augustina is also a trained yoga teacher and mindfulness instructor. Augustina is passionate about supporting women to gain the mindset and know-how so that they can crush the curveballs that life throws at us and use the experience of overcoming obstacles to create their dream life.