Let's Talk About Burnout
- Zenerations Bay Area
- Oct 17, 2021
- 2 min read
Burnout. We’ve all experienced it before. It’s when students face ongoing stress or
frustration from school. Ever since the pandemic, we’ve all been struggling to keep up. There is not really any simple way to refresh and recharge, thus this leads to accumulated stress.
Burnout is a state of mental, physical, and emotional exhaustion where you have experienced long hours of overworking yourself. Despite stress being a motive for kids to reach their goals, burnout can cause them to not have enough rest to feel a sense of accomplishment. This leads to the continuing process of anxiety, where their interest and motivation level can drop.
One example of burnout is when a 6th grade with dyslexia wakes up at 6:45 AM, leaving school at 7:30. She has a full school day of academic workload while working with a reading specialist twice a week. She is required to self-advocate throughout the day but spends 2 extra hours for band practice. Although this example comes from a middle schooler, it’s impossible to imagine what high schoolers encounter (especially their junior year). As a result, this 6th grader bursts into tears at the end of the week, lacking a sense of enthusiasm. Most burnout occurrences stem from academic factors of being pressured to score high test scores, working harder/longer than their fellow peers, or kids struggling with attention deficiency. Emotional and social factors play a part in self-esteem and their family/friend relationships around them.
The point being told is: it’s completely normal to experience burnout but when it becomes very serious, you should take a step back and reflect on yourself. Talking with teachers, counselors, and mental health professionals are all good ways to help relieve stress. Self-care days are significant as well. Dr. Ahmad, psychiatrist and clinical lecturer from the University of Toronto stated that: “If children are seeming to be more withdrawn and shut down, not wanting to engage as much with their peers if they are fearful of going outside, [if they] stop trying new things, and certainly if they are having difficulty with their school work”. Although this readjustment of going back to school seems surreal, the best advice from Dr. Ahmad would be “be yourself, go back, have fun, and learn as much as you can”.
Written by: Laurie Chow
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