Post Covid Life and Already Burnt Out?

Do not wait for another pandemic to realise you are burnt out.

Here I am, two weeks into law school and I already feel like I am six months behind, burnt out, and forgot what going out looks like. What’s even worse is I am back in quarantine for a couple of days and I already feel like I am losing my mind. How did I do this for months on end I have no idea. But I have to realise like I did last quarantine, that this one is a blessing in disguise. It is my opportunity to figure out how to balance my work with living in a new city. How to establish a routine without burning myself out. While I am so excited to finally attend workout classes, I cannot let myself exhaust my body physically. While I am excited to go out and try new activities, I do not want to socially drain myself. While it’s nice to finally have a purpose every day to study and work, I most definitely do not want to burn myself out. I need to apply all the things I left during my self-discovery journey of quarantine to life post covid.

I will not let myself get carried away with the outside world again but I will also not let myself get held back and shy away from life. I need to remember that it is okay to be lost sometimes and it is normal to be stressed. But that it is also okay to choose myself whether that is staying home and working or watching TV or if it is going out and socialising and trying something new. The main thing I need to focus on doing is checking in with myself and making sure I am listening to my personal needs. One main takeaway from quarantine was self-care and not getting lost in life again and with that, I will remember to keep that my main priority.

What does it look like to prioritise yourself? Let me be honest, although I am about to provide you with what I believe are answers, I will disclose that I am still figuring it out.

I want you to realise that you are not alone with your feelings and that I am just as lost times as you potentially could be and I am just figuring it out as I go and that is okay.

So back to my recommended approaches to focusing on yourself. For me, it starts from the inside and works itself out. From the inside, it’s all about mental health and checking in. Take time in your day to see how you are doing, whether it's 2 minutes or 20, just make yourself realise that you care if you are afloat or not. Then once a week treat yourself to something; shopping, a new hobby, a meal, a trip. Especially if you just moved to a new city, try something new in that city once a week. Establish a daily routine- it does not need to be one of those super rigid ones- but something vague like wake up, work out or take a walk, study/ do work, eat, see some friends/ watch tv then sleep. By outlining mini-tasks that do not seem burdensome it will help guide your mind in what lies ahead in the day. After that, integrate physical health, as eating well and exercising (of any kind).

Now that you are back to the day-to-day nature of post covid life, remember to integrate your quarantine rituals to keep yourself sane into your days. Do not get carried away with the fast-paced nature of the world and wait 20 years until another pandemic hits to realise that you are burnt out once again. There is a way to balance, it just takes a bit more effort but pays off a lot more in the long run. Prioritise your internal happiness and focus on what will help you maintain it.

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