Burnout: a mental health related phrase that may be thrown around too much but also not taken as seriously as it should be. With four weeks left in the semester, you are probably feeling like you’re drowning or exhausted. There are days where getting out of bed is the chore, and you feel like you can’t even leave for class.

A heavy workload can feel like a slap in the face, but it doesn’t have to. There’s an increase in demand for attention academically and personally, but this work-grind attitude is helping no one. Leaving zero time for yourself is a detriment to your soul physically, spiritually and emotionally. 

On social media, I have been hearing it takes around three years to four years to recover from burnout. In university, it seems likely to be a yearly process, with summer being the only time students are fully able to take a break and rediscover themselves all over again. 

Partaking in a school structure may lead to a cycle of being burnt out, with little way of finding a way out. There are only so many happiness mantras or bubble baths to do. Overall wellbeing needs to be considered, and more places need to be inclusive of that. 

There are different types of burnout, according to WebMD, and some can be largely focused on a person’s professional life. If your job constantly demands too much of your energy without equal return, they do not deserve the work you are putting in for multiple hours every day. 

The build-up of stress can and will end in a breakdown. There are days where I will break down crying the second I close my door behind me. People are bound to have breakdowns, but they shouldn’t be normalized because “work was really hard today” or “resources that should be provided are not available.” 

We as a society should not be forced to feel hopeless. We need to care for each other. Please watch out for sudden changes in your sleep schedule and in your meal times in the upcoming weeks. 

Finding a way to make it through the tail end of the semester is what matters right now. Pushing yourself to the limit because your schedule is full will not help if you are already feeling fatigued or depressed. 

Hustle culture only encourages the harm that comes along with the academic and professional lifestyles. It encourages work over everything, which may seem beneficial at first. More money should mean more gain from the challenges, which are always trying to be resolved in a fast-paced manner, right? This creates a narrow view of what life actually is. 

Take the time to take a mental health walk every morning. Hike with your loved ones. Drink a glass of water when you wake up without going on any technology. Make your favorite meal from when you were a child. Once you start taking time to heal your inner-child, you are able to energetically be an adult. Healing today is draining, but the progress can be so fulfilling if it helps reduce the effects of burnout too. 

And as cliché as it is, and sounds, it’s okay to not be okay.