Burnout in Business

Reflecting after attending a recent conference it struck me just how many female leaders are deeply confused, conflicted and a little bit tired of trying to figure out how to look after their health and wellness.

Women tell me that they know how they want to feel; energised, calm, empowered and capable. They know what they want but the how to get there part seems to be out of grasp. Let’s face it, we are definitely not taught how to look after our physical and emotional selves and definitely not how to put ourselves first. At times, in fact more times than I like, the Scottish culture is to defer to others and put self way down at the bottom of the priority list, like it’s a badge of honour to feel burnt out, knackered and frazzled.

Most of us cannot point to strong female role models that show us what it could look like to advocate for ones on health and wellness. Years and years of not prioritising self, juggling multiple and often conflicting priorities eventually wears on the physical frame and definitely grinds the emotional self into the floor.

Pushing through our twenties, thirties and forties leads to a physical experience that’s more than a little off kilter. Enter difficult and at times, debilitating peri and menopausal symptoms, adrenal and thyroid dysregulation and if you’ve really pushed through all the alarm bells, full on adrenal fatigue which sees you bed bound and unable to enjoy the life you once had.

The thing is there are red flags and alarm bells along the way, but most ignore them in favour of something else on the to do list that needs tended to. Our medical system is not in the slightest bit joined up to even spot these warning signs. The system likes to catch people (if they’re lucky) once they have fallen off the cliff into chronic health conditions.

What if you could catch yourself now before backsliding off the cliff? Have someone pull all the research, the evidence, other women’s experiences, and the insight of what it’s like to be a working woman trying to be all things to all people whilst simultaneously showing (insert: pretending) to the world she has her sh*t together?