Signs of COVID-19 ‘burnout’ and tips to cope

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WMBF) - Many Americans are experiencing COVID-19 “burnout” as virus cases continue to rise across many parts of the country.

Signs of burnout can be similar to depression, ranging from sleep changes, both oversleeping and insomnia, to not liking things you used to.

Since March, you’ve probably become more comfortable in your daily at-home routines. For example, wearing leisure clothing because other people won’t see it.

Sandy Quast, licensed professional counselor, explained why it’s important to keep a routine and keep up with maintaining yourself.

“Part of it is self-esteem, it makes you feel better. Even if you work from home and you take a shower and you get dressed up decent, doesn’t have to be a full suit, it makes you feel different,” she said. ”Another thing if you are working from home, like with Zoom, you could be standing up rather than sitting now. So if you stand up it has a whole different feel to you and makes you feel like you are out and about more, so whereas sitting down makes you feel more complacent.”

Quast also weighed in on how changing your mindset can help.

“What you choose to focus on and what you choose to focus your thoughts on are actually how you create how you feel,” she said.

Zencare is a website for finding your ideal therapist. It has ways to manage burnout during the pandemic.

First, Zencare says to recognize the symptoms of burnout.

To help lessen the feelings of burnout, Zencare recommends writing down the activities making you feel this way. After this, make considerations for how you’ll alleviate the impact of each one.

One more tip found is to applaud your efforts, not just your outcomes. Experts suggest breaking down the big tasks into smaller ones and check each one off as you complete it.