Did you know that burnout in later life is a real and impactful experience? It can stem from a loss of purpose, social isolation, financial worries, and health challenges that may accompany retirement or later life stages. I didn't!
Elizabeth Gilbert says that perfectionism is fear in high heels and a fur coat! I love this analogy. Abd well done to you for saying No more often. It's a very useful skill
I had no idea I could experience burnout from 'life.' My issue right now is paring down to what's really important and focusing on one or two things. Believe it or not, emails were a source of frustration. A small yet powerful time succubus, I had to unsubscribe from what no longer served. I gained back an hour or two. Social media was another place I had to dial it back. These were sources of my burning out trying to keep up. So weird to me I let these dictate and rule for so long. Good article, Janice.
Hi Patti, Neither did I. I'm glad to see that you are finding ways to cut back. Emails have been a significant issue for me as well. It was just too much.
This is a very valuable article. Am keeping this one in my “stared” file on my phone. This awareness is not just for the elderly. I believe all ages can benefit from these recommendations. Thank you Janice.
Really enjoyed reading this. Sorry to hear about your husband. But this has given me a reason to get up and exercise today and I will probably drink some water too! Thank you. Have been struggling with everything you mentioned.
This is such a beautifully organized, expertly written post, Janice. You impress me so much with your knowledge and your willingness to share with us each week. What a woman!
I loved this. Hearing stories like yours always serves to remind me how brave people can be. In the face of burnout looking for ways to feel better. To take care of yourself. And through all the down times, coming back around to what can save you. Bravo.
Janice, thanks for your wisdom about important ways to take care of ourselves. I'm reminded of writer Francine du Plessix Gray's words about what she called the third age. She stated that older women have more freedom to act and the ability to be outspoken than when younger. And we are both speaking our minds in our Substack blogs.
Thank you Janice! I knew there was something very wrong, but now I have a name. Didn’t think a lifelong workaholic would get burned out in slower-pace retirement, but… Thanks too to you and your fabulous subscribers/followers for ideas & solutions.
Thank you for this article! I suffered burnout last summer, after too many challenges with my adult kids and my mom dying from dementia. It took my therapist three months to figure that out, as I was still highly functioning. I just felt breathless all the time, without being out of breath. I felt I was at the end, not in a suicidal way, but just totally out of steam, beaten down. I cried a lot and that's usually not my style.
Recognizing that I had burnout was the main step towards overcoming it, and also allowing that I simply needed time and space to heal from the hard things.
Hi Annette, I'm so glad that you and your therapist figured it out. Burnout is a sneaky little trap that can become overwhelming if not recognized and acknowledged for what it is, and the need to take care of oneself better.
"Let go of what weighs us down and let curiosity discover what lights us up" What a great phrase. The other day, I left a party early. I just couldn't be bothered to talk to anyone any more, let alone listen. If I don't have the balance right in my life, that's the kind of thing that happens.
Hi Jane, I know exactly what you mean about having to leave early. Sometimes I just have to go. I also think my tolerance level has changed, and I need more alone time than I used to.
Sorry for the burnout, however some of what you describe sounds like Menopause too. So much happening in aging women’s lives only to add hormonal changes too and single living!! May you find your joy again!!??
Thank you so much for giving all of these feelings that I experience almost all the time a name. You have nailed it for me. I thought it was job burnout. So I took a day off my work week. I didn’t feel the relief I was needing at all. So now that you have given it a name, where do you start while still working to survive? You can be with people and still feel social isolation. By the time I think of something I might consider fun, I have talked myself out of it due to the effort that I need to put out to pull it off. I am a complete failure at perfectionism and am embarrassed by lack of ability to follow in birth family requirements. If I can’t do it now with everything being perfect after 70 years of practice how do I make that ok with the world. If I can’t walk into the doctor’s office without the perfect weight, blood pressure and lab results so I don’t look like a failure. Forget the fact that I need two new knees and hurt. How can I hide that fact. And as long sd I can stand on those legs I can financially take care of myself and make 3 more years of mortgage payments. This feels like burnout to me.
Where would I begin to turn it around to make life enjoyable. I do not feel that I am a difficult person to deal with. I try to make everything work, until I reach this “burnout” condition. Where would I begin?
Thank you so much for giving these feelings a real name. I am grateful that other aging women might be dealing with these same feelings.
Hi Susan, I had to smile because I'm really good at talking myself out of doing things, because it's too much effort. I'm trying to identify what would make me feel joy and then make the effort to do it because it softens the burnout. My theory is that, like me, reclaiming your personal power might be helpful.
I am grateful for your words Janice! I too have been burnt out by a decade including a move to a new area with my husband & more along with a rare cancer diagnosis & a move back to where I feel more at home but a year of settling back where my Dad needed extra care emotionally as he turned 100, then died 6 weeks later. Managing his relatively simple estate with my brother was ok but arduous & then I STOPPED & to be honest with a condition of IBS stopping me from what I used to enjoy it's been a hard life lesson to learn. Self care is prime as is paring back MY expectations of me. Go well Janice, I appreciate your words & thoughts very much.
Did you know that burnout in later life is a real and impactful experience? It can stem from a loss of purpose, social isolation, financial worries, and health challenges that may accompany retirement or later life stages. I didn't!
Elizabeth Gilbert says that perfectionism is fear in high heels and a fur coat! I love this analogy. Abd well done to you for saying No more often. It's a very useful skill
Ha! That's great. That pesky perfectionism can just waltz right on outta here!
Hi Donna, yeah, perfectionism causes a lot of issues. And it's an impossible target.
Just wow. Thank you so, so much for this. Sending sunshine and smiles. 🌞
This is an excellent template for well-being. Thank you Janice.
I had no idea I could experience burnout from 'life.' My issue right now is paring down to what's really important and focusing on one or two things. Believe it or not, emails were a source of frustration. A small yet powerful time succubus, I had to unsubscribe from what no longer served. I gained back an hour or two. Social media was another place I had to dial it back. These were sources of my burning out trying to keep up. So weird to me I let these dictate and rule for so long. Good article, Janice.
Hi Patti, Neither did I. I'm glad to see that you are finding ways to cut back. Emails have been a significant issue for me as well. It was just too much.
This is a very valuable article. Am keeping this one in my “stared” file on my phone. This awareness is not just for the elderly. I believe all ages can benefit from these recommendations. Thank you Janice.
Really enjoyed reading this. Sorry to hear about your husband. But this has given me a reason to get up and exercise today and I will probably drink some water too! Thank you. Have been struggling with everything you mentioned.
Hi, I think this burnout is rather insidious - it creeps in slowly, gradually, until it becomes a significant issue.
This is such a beautifully organized, expertly written post, Janice. You impress me so much with your knowledge and your willingness to share with us each week. What a woman!
Ah, Sharron, thank you so much.
I loved this. Hearing stories like yours always serves to remind me how brave people can be. In the face of burnout looking for ways to feel better. To take care of yourself. And through all the down times, coming back around to what can save you. Bravo.
Hi Marychris, Thank you so much! I guess, for me, it's been about trying to make the best of a situation that was neither anticipated nor planned for.
Janice, thanks for your wisdom about important ways to take care of ourselves. I'm reminded of writer Francine du Plessix Gray's words about what she called the third age. She stated that older women have more freedom to act and the ability to be outspoken than when younger. And we are both speaking our minds in our Substack blogs.
Hi Laurie, So true. It's been about me allowing myself to speak my truth, and Substack giving me a place to do it.
Thank you Janice! I knew there was something very wrong, but now I have a name. Didn’t think a lifelong workaholic would get burned out in slower-pace retirement, but… Thanks too to you and your fabulous subscribers/followers for ideas & solutions.
Hi Fred, I was also surprised to learn this. I knew about work burnout, but had never heard of burnout in later life. It does make sense.
Thank you for this article! I suffered burnout last summer, after too many challenges with my adult kids and my mom dying from dementia. It took my therapist three months to figure that out, as I was still highly functioning. I just felt breathless all the time, without being out of breath. I felt I was at the end, not in a suicidal way, but just totally out of steam, beaten down. I cried a lot and that's usually not my style.
Recognizing that I had burnout was the main step towards overcoming it, and also allowing that I simply needed time and space to heal from the hard things.
Hi Annette, I'm so glad that you and your therapist figured it out. Burnout is a sneaky little trap that can become overwhelming if not recognized and acknowledged for what it is, and the need to take care of oneself better.
"Let go of what weighs us down and let curiosity discover what lights us up" What a great phrase. The other day, I left a party early. I just couldn't be bothered to talk to anyone any more, let alone listen. If I don't have the balance right in my life, that's the kind of thing that happens.
Hi Jane, I know exactly what you mean about having to leave early. Sometimes I just have to go. I also think my tolerance level has changed, and I need more alone time than I used to.
Sorry for the burnout, however some of what you describe sounds like Menopause too. So much happening in aging women’s lives only to add hormonal changes too and single living!! May you find your joy again!!??
Thank you Mary Ann, may we all.
Thank you so much for giving all of these feelings that I experience almost all the time a name. You have nailed it for me. I thought it was job burnout. So I took a day off my work week. I didn’t feel the relief I was needing at all. So now that you have given it a name, where do you start while still working to survive? You can be with people and still feel social isolation. By the time I think of something I might consider fun, I have talked myself out of it due to the effort that I need to put out to pull it off. I am a complete failure at perfectionism and am embarrassed by lack of ability to follow in birth family requirements. If I can’t do it now with everything being perfect after 70 years of practice how do I make that ok with the world. If I can’t walk into the doctor’s office without the perfect weight, blood pressure and lab results so I don’t look like a failure. Forget the fact that I need two new knees and hurt. How can I hide that fact. And as long sd I can stand on those legs I can financially take care of myself and make 3 more years of mortgage payments. This feels like burnout to me.
Where would I begin to turn it around to make life enjoyable. I do not feel that I am a difficult person to deal with. I try to make everything work, until I reach this “burnout” condition. Where would I begin?
Thank you so much for giving these feelings a real name. I am grateful that other aging women might be dealing with these same feelings.
Hi Susan, I had to smile because I'm really good at talking myself out of doing things, because it's too much effort. I'm trying to identify what would make me feel joy and then make the effort to do it because it softens the burnout. My theory is that, like me, reclaiming your personal power might be helpful.
Thank you so much. I know now I am not the only one that struggles and you have a thought process that puts you back on track.
Hi Susan, As you can see by the comments, this is a relatively common phenomenon.
I am grateful for your words Janice! I too have been burnt out by a decade including a move to a new area with my husband & more along with a rare cancer diagnosis & a move back to where I feel more at home but a year of settling back where my Dad needed extra care emotionally as he turned 100, then died 6 weeks later. Managing his relatively simple estate with my brother was ok but arduous & then I STOPPED & to be honest with a condition of IBS stopping me from what I used to enjoy it's been a hard life lesson to learn. Self care is prime as is paring back MY expectations of me. Go well Janice, I appreciate your words & thoughts very much.
Hi Denyse, I so agree with your point. Self-care and paring back my expectations are so important. I'm trying to build self-compassion as well.