This post is starting to breach that “diary entry” territory, but I do believe its necessary to share my experiences – something tells me you’d relate. Having worked nonstop for the last scary number of years, I turned my last 2 months into escapism on steroids: occasional impulsive purchases, booking travel, tons of fashion content, boxes of Ferrero Rocher, video games, more dressing up, more going out – and most importantly, catching up on all the Real Housewife franchises (except Miami, you can probably guess why.) As a Ukrainian New Yorker who is always ON and always GO GO GO – taking a step back and into a bubble of just the silly things that make me happy has been extremely hard, but ultimately a bliss.

So what did I do besides that fun list? Here’s another list for you. I limited access to news allowing just a few daily updates to keep up with my donations to Ukraine. Pacifism is something I strongly frown upon and being “apolitical” or “unaware” of foreign and domestic policy of your country is a wild concept I don’t subscribe to – but the amount of news I was consuming on a daily basis (deep dives, mind you, not just headlines) has gotten out of hand and I needed a break from notifications. Then, I set my own boundaries for when the work day ends and committed to completely signing off for the evenings. My career in NYC is in marketing and I worked in extremely fast startup environments in the technology industry my whole life: this world is very likely to blur your work/life balance because there’s so much to do at all hours of the day. If I don’t set my own boundaries, you can get a work email response from me at 2AM – so, this was a necessary little move to battle and avoid burnout. Finally, I committed to healthier life choices (except Ferreros, of course) – but more along the lines of daily vitamins & cold pressed juices, more sleep and daily exercise, less alcohol and sugar (again, Ferreros are sacred and this post isn’t sponsored by them but I would cry, scream and faint if it was).

Ok so now, what are the actual ways to stick to those habits? Another list! I limited notifications on my phone for certain apps and alerts. Digital detoxes trigger anxiety in almost everyone I know, but I can genuinely say that limiting screen time and alerts works wonders in recovering from burnout. This overrated suggestion might sound silly, but writing down lists of things that make you happy, reminders of what to be thankful for, quotes that get you excited or motivated – essentially anything to get you into your happy bubble is another solid move to pull yourself out of a burnout funk. And finally, I allowed myself to have weekends when I wasn’t 100% productive. Not stressing to make sure I had an action-packed or even properly relaxing weekend allowed me to… actually have a relaxing weekend. No self care skincare, no journaling by aromatherapy candles, no events, no makeup – just my favorite YouTubers, Housewives and naps. Sometimes nothing is as restorative as allowing yourself to do nothing.