Burnout Isn’t a Switch: It’s a Cycle
- Santina Wheat
- 2 hours ago
- 4 min read
The Subtle Signs You’re Healing — And the Subtle Signs You’re Slipping
If you’ve ever experienced burnout, you probably hoped there would be a clear moment when it was “over.”
A clean break. A finish line. A declaration: You are now well.
That’s not how it works.
Burnout recovery — especially for physicians and high-achieving healthcare professionals — is rarely a dramatic transformation. It’s quieter than that.
It’s cyclical. It’s gradual. It’s subtle.
And often, the first signs that you’re coming out of burnout (or slipping back into it) show up in small, almost forgettable ways.
Over the years — both as a family physician and as a coach working with burned-out doctors — I’ve noticed patterns in myself.
Here are mine.
Maybe you’ll recognize yourself in them too.
Five Signs I’m Coming Out of Burnout
Not when I’ve fixed everything. Not when work gets easier. Not when the system changes.
But when I start coming back to myself.
1) I Start Picking Up Books Again
When I’m burned out, reading feels impossible. Even five pages feels like too much cognitive load. I scroll instead. I numb instead. I collapse instead.
When I start reaching for a book at night — even for 10 minutes — it’s a sign my brain has space again.
Not productivity.
Not achievement.
Space.
And space is healing.
2) I Say Yes When My Kids Ask Me to Do Something That Requires My Full Attention
Not distracted yes. Not “in a minute” yes. Not “after I finish this email” yes.
A real yes.
When I’m emerging from burnout, I can tolerate slowing down long enough to build Lego, watch something together, or sit on the floor and just be present.
Burnout steals our attention before it steals our performance.
When your attention starts coming back, that matters.
3) I Initiate Date Nights
When I’m crispy, connection feels like effort.
When I’m recovering, connection feels nourishing again.
I start suggesting we go out.I look forward to it.I don’t resent the energy it takes.
That shift tells me my emotional bandwidth is returning.
4) I Start Calling Friends Again
Burnout isolates.
It tells you:
You’re too tired.
You don’t have time.
You’ll call later.
Later often becomes months.
When I start picking up the phone just to check in — not because I need something — that’s a sign I’m coming back online.
Connection is one of the first casualties of burnout. It’s also one of the first markers of recovery.
5) I Stop Snapping at Everyone Around Me
This one is humbling.
When I’m burned out, my patience evaporates.
I snap at my partner. I overreact to small inconveniences. I feel irritated by normal human behavior.
When that edge softens — when I can pause before reacting — that’s healing.
Not because I’m perfect.But because I have margin again.
Five Signs I’m Getting Crispy (or approaching burnout) Again
Burnout doesn’t always announce itself loudly.
Sometimes it creeps in.
Here’s how I know I’m drifting back toward the edge.
1) It’s Been Days Since I Even Thought About Reading
Not that I didn’t read.
That I didn’t even consider it.
When curiosity disappears, that’s data.
2) I Start Prioritizing Tasks Over Myself
I tell myself:
I’ll rest later.
I’ll exercise next week.
I’ll eat when I’m done.
I’ll take a break after this chart.
Productivity becomes the priority.
Care becomes optional.
That’s a dangerous shift for high-achieving physicians, because the world rewards it.
But my nervous system doesn’t.
3) Everything Feels Louder
The emails.The notifications.The questions.The interruptions.
It’s not that they increased.
It’s that my capacity decreased.
When normal stimuli feel overwhelming, that’s usually my nervous system waving a flag.
4) I Respond Too Quickly
This one surprises people.
When I’m crispy, I fire off responses immediately — especially when something triggers me.
A comment that feels unfair.An email that sounds critical.A request that feels unreasonable.
I don’t pause. I react.
Urgency replaces discernment.
That’s rarely my best leadership.
5) I Avoid Phone Calls With Friends
Isolation creeps back in quietly.
“I’m too busy.”“I’ll call this weekend.”“I don’t have the energy.”
And connection starts to thin out again.
That’s rarely random.
The Most Important Part: Burnout Recovery Is a Practice
The goal isn’t to never feel crispy again.
The goal is to notice sooner.
Burnout recovery isn’t a one-time event. It’s an ongoing calibration.
You drift. You notice. You recalibrate.
Here are the five things I do when I catch myself drifting:
Five Things I Do to Pull Myself Back
1) I Read for Five Minutes
Not an hour.
Five minutes.
Small acts of re-engagement matter more than big declarations.
2) I Take 30 Extra Seconds Before Responding
Especially to emails or comments that put me at a 3 out of 10… or an 8.
Thirty seconds of breath can prevent thirty minutes of repair later.
This is leadership work.
3) I Protect What’s on My Calendar
If I’ve scheduled:
A workout
A walk
A coffee
Reflection time
I treat it like a meeting.
Because it is.
Physicians are exceptional at honoring commitments to others. We need to get better at honoring commitments to ourselves.
4) I Turn On My Favorite Playlist
It sounds simple.
It works.
Music shifts state faster than logic.
5) I Take Five Minutes to Reflect Each Morning
Not journaling for an hour.
Five minutes asking:
How am I actually doing?
What do I need today?
What would make this day feel grounded?
Burnout thrives when we stop checking in with ourselves.
Recovery strengthens when we start again.
For the Physician Who Thinks They “Should Be Better By Now”
If you’ve done therapy. If you’ve taken a break. If you’ve cut back. If you’ve made changes.
And you still notice yourself getting crispy sometimes?
That doesn’t mean you failed.
It means you’re human.
You work in a high-demand, emotionally loaded, cognitively intense environment.
Resilience is not the absence of strain.
It’s the ability to notice strain and respond differently.
And that is a skill.
If this resonates with you — if you can feel yourself somewhere on this spectrum — I’d encourage you to start with awareness.
Not overhaul. Not quitting. Not dramatic change.
Just noticing your own five signs.
And if you want structured support in building stronger boundaries and catching the drift earlier, my 7-Day Boundary Challenge walks you through small, daily recalibrations that create real relief.
Because burnout recovery isn’t about becoming someone new.
It’s about returning to yourself — again and again.
And that return is always available.