7 of Your Favorite Writers on How to Avoid Burnout
Plus a Givaway
Last month, I turned off my phone for seven days, and something in me cracked open. I’m not going to claim I emerged a whole new person, but I will say this: it changed me. Quietly, deeply, and in ways I’m still unpacking.
There’s a lot I want to write about what I noticed, what I missed, what came back online in me when everything else went dark. But for now, if you’re curious about how I did it, what surprised me, or what I’ll do differently next time, drop your questions below.
I know this topic hits a nerve. We’re all so tethered, and I think a lot of us are craving space to breathe.
One of the things I realized while I was offline is that I can’t treat being on my phone or off my phone like some dramatic either-or. It’s not a binary. Just like I’ve had to teach myself over the years that I don’t have to choose between caring deeply about something and keeping my sanity.
It is possible to stay engaged without drowning. To use the phone without being used by it. To care without unraveling. It’s not clean or easy or consistent, but it’s possible. And that possibility feels like the most important part.
As someone who’s spent 20 years in politics, one of the questions I get asked all the time is: How do you stay engaged without losing your mind?
And honestly? Some days, I don’t. Burnout is real. Let’s just name that. It’s not a personal failing or a vibe issue—it’s math. When your output outweighs your input for too long, something gives.
Lately, I’ve been deep in the research: reading everything I can on burnout, boundaries, and nervous system repair. But I’ve also been crowdsourcing wisdom from the people I trust most: my community. What are they doing to stay sane in the chaos? How are they still showing up without burning out?
I’m sharing their advice below, along with 13 things I’m committing to trying myself. Not because I’ve figured it all out—but because I know I’m not the only one trying to find a better way.
Giveaway
Also because we could all use a little more comfort right now I’m giving away a Hugimal Hugaround!
If you haven’t heard of Hugimals, they’re these incredible stuffed animals made for both kids and adults. They’re weighted, like a cozy little friend-version of a weighted blanket, and they’re designed to help soothe your nervous system. I genuinely love them.
Want one? Drop I NEED A HUG in the comments for a chance to win. (U.S. only for this one.)
Now onto the advice:
Lyz Lenz - @
Journalist (Men Yell at Me) and author of This American Ex-Wife
Give yourself a break. Schedule it. You deserve it.
This winter, I realized I was burnt out when I found myself sobbing in a restaurant to my friend Molly. I felt overwhelmed. I am the board chair of my local abortion access fund, and our executive director had just resigned. I'm a single parent with two kids, and I co-parent with a Trump supporter. I live in Iowa, a very red state, where rights are constantly under attack. I also make my living writing about these issues, while living them everyday. If I was going to get through all of this, I needed to change the way I worked. Since I am my own boss, I began giving myself Wednesdays off. (Well, mostly off.) Those are the days I pop on an audiobook and take my dog on really long walks along nature trails near my house. I've begun deleting social media apps off my phone on the weekends and at night before bed. And when I am with my friends, I turn my phone on to "do not disturb." Or even airplane mode (if I know my kids are safe and in bed and don't need me.) I've also been better about telling people, "Hey I am burnt out and tired. I am going to do this thing, but I want you to know where I am." I am also asking for help. I've simply stopped doing some chores, like matching socks and folding clothes. My kids can fold clothes and match socks and if they don't, who cares? And I am also working on giving myself permission to operate at 70 percent or less. I am a Type A achiever, I mean, last year, I set out to run one marathon and did two. I need to remind myself over and over that simply showing up is half the work. I don't need to do everything, I just need to do the things I can.
Redefine success and happiness.
I have to remind myself that success is being happy no matter what happens around you. Success is joy. Success is pizza parties with my friends. Success is laughing with my kids over a silly TV show and letting dinner be noodles again for the 15th time. The world is not going to be made better by my misery. So I keep trying to find ways to be happier. Is it getting a Spritz with a friend in the middle of the day? Going to see a movie? Is it coffee and a walk? Is it making time to go bowling when I'd rather rot in bed? Is it rotting in bed when I think I should be answering emails?
Yes, it's all those things. But I do think, we have to find ways to be joyful goddammit, otherwise, what are we even doing here?
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