It’s most likely that you’ve heard of burnout and you may have even experienced it. Caused by chronic work stress, being burnt out is characterized by signs such as emotional exhaustion, lack of energy, and loss of satisfaction with work – and has been linked to a wide range of physical conditions.

Work stress activates our hormonal, metabolic, immune, and cardiovascular systems. If these bodily responses are triggered too frequently, or for too long, they fail to return to normal and may alter our body’s immune and inflammation responses. These changes may eventually cause other physical conditions – such as coronary heart disease.

Although an overhaul of work conditions and culture is needed to address the rise in people experiencing burnout, there are still many things we can do ourselves to deal with it now. The most significant way we can prevent burnout is recovery.

Stages of Burnout

Burnout is a consequence of chronic work stress over extended periods of time. It has three components:

1. Emotional exhaustion (feeling tired, drained, frustrated and fatigued);
2. Cynicism or detachment (caring less about coworkers or clients);
3. A loss of satisfaction in one’s work.

Recovering From Burnout

Dealing with burnout is about recovering well from work, rather than focusing on being more productive or better at the work itself. Research continues to show how important it is to recover from work on a daily basis.

Recovery means finding time or space for yourself where you don’t engage in things that are work-related or stressful. Proper recovery helps you feel more energetic and enthusiastic to face another day at work. Recovery can take place both during the workday (internal recovery) and outside of work (external recovery).

How To Recover From Burnout While You Have To Keep Working

Working in the hospitality industry can be demanding, especially during busy periods. You might not have the opportunity to stay out of work for a while to get back on your feet, which could make the burnout even worse.

Interestingly, you can successfully recover from burnout while you have to keep working. There are 2 ways to go about it: Internal Recovery & External Recovery.

Internal recovery is about giving ourselves relief from stress by using short periods of time during work to reduce our body’s stress responses. This can include taking short breaks, doing breathing exercises, or switching tasks when you’re feeling mentally or physically exhausted. So, if you have a few minutes spare at work between tasks or meetings, you may be better off trying to relax rather than checking your emails.

After work, we have the opportunity for external recovery. These are things we do outside of work to help relieve stress. Instead of keeping on top of work and emails, external recovery may include doing any activities you enjoy. These might include watching TV, reading, or socializing – as long as these activities don’t encourage you to think (and stress) more about work.

The key to good recovery is choosing activities based on how they make you feel.

If social media creates negative feelings, don’t check it during your work breaks or after work. If socializing with certain people makes you feel drained, this isn’t going to help you recover.

Daily recovery is also important. Research shows the energy gained from the previous day’s after-work activities helps manage the day’s work stress. But it’s important to know that it’s not the amount of time spent on recovering, but the quality of these activities.

Even if you don’t have a lot of time, it’s still important to carve out a little time for yourself to do something you find satisfying. Taking time to recover is shown to help people feel more engaged at work, and protects against the longer-term consequences of work stress and risk of burnout. As a hospitality professional, your mental health is of topmost importance.