Burnout is a Recurrent, Relapsing Condition...and so is Your Healing

Here’s the hard truth: burnout isn’t a one-and-done crash you recover from and never revisit.

For many of us—especially driven women balancing work, caregiving, and endless responsibilities—burnout tends to circle back again and again.

The good news? If burnout is recurrent, so is your resilience.

What Burnout Looks Like:

The WHO names three dimensions...

Exhaustion — feeling drained and depleted.

Cynicism — apathy or negativity toward responsibilities.

Reduced accomplishment — nothing you do feels like it matters.

And it doesn’t just affect work. Burnout can show up as:

Physical: fatigue, poor sleep, digestive issues.

Mental: brain fog, racing thoughts, reduced creativity.

Emotional: irritability, frustration, out-of-proportion anger.

Behavioral: procrastination, withdrawal, numbing with food or alcohol.

Basically, chronic stress drains your battery until you’re running on fumes.

Why It Keeps Coming Back

Once you’ve burned out, your body remembers. Stress hormones carve grooves into your brain.

Polyvagal Theory explains how a nervous system that’s lived in fight-or-flight can tip back into overdrive more quickly.
And identity plays a role. If you believe, “If I’m not productive, who am I?” the pull back into burnout is strong. The very traits that make you successful—drive, grit, high standards—also make you vulnerable to relapse.

Flavors of Burnout
Burnout wears different 
Work Burnout: deadlines, long hours.

Caregiver Burnout: tending to everyone else’s needs.

Decision Fatigue: when even dinner feels overwhelming.

You may recover from one, only to slip into another.

Spotting Early Signs of Burnout is the Key to Faster Recovery:
Your body whispers before it shouts. Notice your signals...

Snapping more easily.

Reaching for sugar or caffeine.

Skipping the practices that ground you.

Waking up tired after a full night’s sleep.

Write down your first three warning signs and create a Relapse Map so you can act early.

Three Anchors to Reset

Pause before you push. Even three deep breaths help.

Audit your energy leaks. Ask: What am I saying yes to that drains me?

Re-anchor into restoration. Meditation, nature, silence, monotasking—these are real nervous system repair.

The Hopeful Part:
Burnout may be recurrent, but so is your ability to reset. Each cycle gives you feedback—not failure.
You are not a machine. You are a human being. Your worth isn’t measured by productivity.
So when you feel burnout creeping in, don’t shame yourself. Pause, breathe, and choose differently—even in small ways. That’s how resilience keeps circling back, too.

Thank you for being here. You'll also hear the podcast episode via Inner Peace and Power here!