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Burn out and Skills Regression

KuriouslyAutistic44

Hello wonderful community! So I have been in burn out since September, however just today after much thought I realized I've had a patterning of burning out every 3 to 4 years. This burn out is different, I feel like I have regressed in so many ways, and I feel like baby relearning things again. I would love some insight of what your experiences of burnout have been and what recovery looks like. All the coping mechanisms to get through doesn't work anymore and I feel like I've regressed into a BIG CHILD trying to remember what it means to "adult" again. 

Presently, recovery has been me sleeping a lot, eating the foods I like, doing the things I like and barely working. I feel like this year was the straw that broke the camel's back per say. I am also struggling to "be okay" where I am especially since I do not have the means to really "recover" in a cabin in the mountains somewhere which I believe would really help my soul at the moment. Trying to figure out money and support myself during recovery is a bit of challenge. 

I would really like to hear your thoughts and stories. 

Much Gratitude!

  • hi wonderful  !  I've had a "year that breaks the camels back" too.  Regression as you describe it is a similar experience for me.  For myself it is partly ascribable to loss of confidence on capability - even when "recovering" there is the nagging doubt that is linked with having seen how easy the whole pack of cards can tumble down.  Having this happen repeatedly can lead to a sense of hopelessness.  Recovery for me is now in the context of not aiming to be like I was before - after all look what happened later... So rather than recovery I am aiming to some extent for re-imagination, re-creation and re-discovery.  This is the baby like nature that you refer to perhaps.  This in itself takes energy before it can start to generate its own momentum therefore gentle care and attention seems to be necessary.  Neurotypical society appears to want to reinforce set backs rather than enable progression in my experience.  Getting support coming thro' burnout is tricky in a culture that appears to expect so much of everyone all the time these days and has a strange perspective on what it means to be a high achiever.  As regards finance - yep got those concerns too - same reasons...  I wish you all the best :-)

  • Hello KuriouslyAutistic44,

    Thank you so much for your post. I am really sorry to read about the burn out you have been experiencing. May I direct you to the advive page on Autistic fatigue and burnout in case there is anything there that may help you. Please find the link below:

    https://www.autism.org.uk/advice-and-guidance/topics/mental-health/autistic-fatigue

    With best wishes, 

    Anna MOD

  • Rearrange your expectations of yourself. Your hour, your day, your week, your year, your life in general. It's as much about managing this as recovering. Consider what is sustainable for you. It might not be what you think or what your current or previous situations have been. For some, recovery is ongoing for the forseeable.

  • KuriouslyAutistic44 said:
    All the coping mechanisms to get through doesn't work anymore

    I used to have a similar issue where it would be either 3 years or 7 years that were the point where I had my fill and would resign as I just couldn't face doing any more.

    I didn't have the option of much time off for ecovery though - I was the breadwinner for my relationship and I needed to be earning or would be homeless so I would get another job, often much less demanding, and coast for a while as I recharged and once able to face a high stress environment then would start tracking down a job that would pay well again.

    My recovery when in near burnout would be to create time for some meditation and find some way to let me mind wind down from the whirlwind of stresses going on and ground it for long enough to take control of it again.

    Mindfulness helps a lot when in a stressful working environment and has allowed me to manage some pretty extreme situations as a manager (delivering a big, complex project on time in spite of the staff leaving) but there is always a build up over time that is really hard to get over.

    A few weeks on a beach somewhere tropical is another way that works for me as the days are long and quiet so plenty of time to wrestle with those internal demons while swinging in a hammock in the shade and drinking cold beer.

    The beach solution only works when there is plenty of cash in the bank though.