As days turn to weeks and weeks turn to months, more and more people are experiencing work from home burnout.
You may be finding it hard to get up from bed to begin your work day. Maybe you just don’t have the desire to work at all. Or you may be having trouble logging off from work because work-life boundaries are beginning to get blurred.
The good news is that there are ways to cope and alleviate the negative effects of work from home burnout. Here are just some of them.
Create a daily routine
If you’ve been making that daily trip to and from work for a while now, it can be disorienting to suddenly not. After all, you have established a daily routine that works.
You wake up at the same time every morning, leave the house at a certain hour, follow a schedule in the office, and then go home at a specific time.
But now that you’re working from home, it can be a struggle to structure a work day.
The kids are also staying at home all day, so you also need to make sure their needs are met.
Having a daily schedule helps. If possible, follow the same one you have at the office.
Now that you don’t need to leave the house, why not allot the time you used to spend on driving or commuting for exercising instead?
You can meditate, clean the house, or cook your lunch or dinner. The important thing is to follow a schedule while also having small breaks within the day to break the monotony.
Get active
When you’re physically active, your mood will improve as well because your body will release endorphins.
It’s a great way to combat boredom, anxiety, and the sense of malaise that’s sure to be felt when in a prolonged quarantine.
There are tons of home workout ideas that will get your blood running and your body sweating. Watch videos online if you want to do yoga, Pilates, or Zumba.
Lift weights, do 15 minutes on your treadmill or stationary bike, or just dance to your favorite party playlist on Spotify.
Remember that you don’t need expensive workout equipment to be active.
Combat anxiety and boredom by doing something fun
A big reason why we’re experiencing burnout is because we are bored, exhausted, frustrated, or feeling isolated.
Keeping busy will help. But if you’re busy because there’s just too much work, this can make things even worse.
Stick to your routines while discovering new things to keep you preoccupied.
Maybe this is the perfect time to rearrange your furniture or organize your closet. Perhaps now you can sign up for that online class, or watch a few documentaries that will teach you something new.
Discover a new hobby, or rediscover an old one.
When you’re busy with your creative outlets, your sense of purpose also grows. You work towards something and look forward to getting up every morning.
Catch up with family and friends
Not only does it help you unload your thoughts and feelings, it’s also a good way to stay close to your loved ones without breaking social distancing protocols.
Check in on each other in your group chats or social media posts.
Have a daily video conversation while having lunch or dinner so you have the sense that you’re all eating together.
Share funny videos and memes, and even play online games together. There’s a lot of great content online that will have you in stitches and feeling all the good vibes.
Filter the content that you see online
It’s always good to know what is happening in the Philippines and the rest of the world, especially when it comes to the fight against Covid-19.
However, being bombarded with updates about Covid-19 fatalities or new Covid-19 cases can truly induce a sense of fear, panic, or anxiety. Even the most optimistic people can experience mental or emotional exhaustion.
Filter out the negative and inaccurate information that can only add to your stress. That includes toxic social media posts from friends and family members!
Set an hour a day for some ‘me’ time
Whatever time you prefer is okay, as long as it’s a time you can rest, relax, and pamper yourself.
If you have this to look forward to, it will help you just gloss over the small, annoying parts of your day.
You can switch from a frantic pace to one that is calm and unhurried.
Take care of yourself everyday. It’s so easy and simple, and it can transform the tone of your entire day.
Go to bed early
This does not mean going to bed early so you can scroll through your phone until you fall asleep.
Sleeping early allows your body to rest early so you wake up the next day feeling recharged and refreshed.
Late nights and early mornings affect not only your energy levels but also your moods. Which leads to a lack of focus and, ultimately, a decrease in productivity and heightened restlessness.
It’s only temporary
There’s a reason why everyone’s staying indoors and working from home, and it’s to help stop the spread of the virus.
Everyone is making a sacrifice to keep one another safe and flatten the curve.
Reminding yourself that this is not going to last forever can help stop the rising panic, boredom, or burnout. Hang in there!
Look at the bright side
It may be tough to separate work life from home life now that you’re working from home.
But just think about how much time you’re getting to spend with your family.
You’re also saving money on gas and transportation, and eating more home-cooked food now.
You can wear anything you want, as long as it’s professional-looking enough on video calls, of course.
No one complains about what music you’re playing, and you can even have Netflix or CNN playing in the background while you work.
Focus on the positives. A healthy perspective can certainly help in dispelling feelings of burnout.
The Bottomline
Everyone is expected to still be productive while working from home, but it’s important to include a period of recovery into your work days, too.
You can’t perform well if you’re lacking sleep or feeling distracted, stressed, tired, or unmotivated.
These are challenging days, no doubt about it. It’s not normal to be quarantined for this long.
Working from home during a pandemic definitely puts additional pressure on everyone.
This is why it’s crucial that you be kinder to yourself and take that much-needed personal time!
Taking a break does not mean slacking off. Work can be a good coping mechanism, but don’t overdo it that you compromise your own physical and mental health.