ICE. Billionaires. Iran. The Epstein Files. The cancellation of the Buffy reboot.
There’s a lot to be stressed about. Every time we pick up our phones, our bodies are flooded with the same chemicals that our ancestors used to fight or flee from a saber-toothed tiger. And once those chemicals are released, they don’t magically go away the moment we set our phones aside.
And they certainly don’t go away if we keep doomscrolling or ruminating.
This week on the pod, Amelia Nagoski walked us through the steps of noticing stress before it happens and what we can do if we miss the signs and end up in full-on burnout. She should know — several years ago, she found herself so burned out that she ended up at the hospital in so much pain that she thought she was dying.
The best way to avoid burnout in the first place is to notice it coming on. You can start by finding your body’s baseline: use your five senses (sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch) regularly to figure out what your normal, everyday self feels like. If you practice paying attention, you’ll be a lot more likely to notice when stress starts to pile up.
But many of us are already stressed. Already burned out. So what do we do now? (And also, what makes all of this political? Because it goes even deeper than you might think.)
There are many ways of “moving through the stress cycle,” as Amelia puts it. That includes:
creative self-expression
imagination
sleep
a big old laugh
a big old cry
connection with other people, pets, or any presence that makes you feel seen and loved
getting involved locally in your community
That last point was, of course, music to our ears. And it’s not just because you have more political power on the local level. It’s because our brains have an internal monitor that keeps track of how much effort we expend compared to the results we see.
When we try to defeat ICE nationwide or demand the release of the Epstein Files, it takes a LOT of effort to achieve even the smallest victory. That’s not to say those efforts aren’t worthwhile! But if you’re feeling burned out, you might want to focus on something in your community instead. Fighting a local book ban or building a local park also takes effort, but you’re more likely to see meaningful results. And even better, you can see the real-life effect on your neighbors every day.
This (long!) post only scratches the surface of Katie and LaFonda’s conversation with Amelia Nagoski, so be sure to check out the full episode of How To Not Lose Your Sh!t wherever you get podcasts!
Have you been feeling burned out lately? If you’ve found that Amelia’s tips — or any other strategies — have been helping you, we’d love to hear about it!
