My therapist told me if I didn't think I was worthy enough to be honest with myself, I'd continue accepting things that make me feel bad like excess stress and over performance. First: ouch. Second, I'm at a point where I can admit I do have an unhealthy relationship with both that always lead to burnout.
Now that I'm ready to start embracing the art of slow living, there are a few burnout books I've been reading, taking notes from, and annotating. Honestly, I think we could all use a break from stress so I'm sharing the 13 burnout books that are helping me make a slow, but necessary change.
The Burnoutby Kinsella Sophie
Sasha's corporate life has left her feeling everything but inspired. Her days revolve around putting out 'fires' at work which means her personal life essentially doesn't exist. Deciding to leave that behind for a while, she books a trip to her favorite resort only to find that it doesn't look or feel like paradise once she arrives. She runs into Finn and he's just as stressed as her, but he wears his ornery feelings on his sleeves.
This leads to disagreements and a series of notes that leave them no choice but to talk to each other. Suddenly, there's so much to talk about and the discovery of a shared hobby begins bringing them closer than their burnout ever will.
Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle by Emily Nagoski and Amelia Nagoski
Emily Nagoski, PhD, and Amelia Nagoski, DMA, are two sisters who have written a manual that's meant to help you get to the root of your burnout. They combine science and resources that also help you deviate away from letting stress control your life. Additionally, the sisters have put together The Burnout Workbook: Advice and Exercises to Help You Unlock the Stress Cycle so you have more room to complete the exercises in Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle.
The 30-Day Burnout Fix: End Exhaustion, Break the Stress Cycle, and Reclaim Control Through Mindset Shifts, Behavioral Change, and Emotional Mastery by Janessa Rhoades
Reading about someone's experience with burnout makes us feel less alone and that's exactly what you can find in The 30-Day Burnout Fix. Janessa Rhoades is adamant about giving you action-based tools that you can apply to your daily life. It's similar to receiving 'homework' after your therapist session. In order to change the way you live, this book lets you know that you have to be willing to do the work.
Burnout Recovery: 15 techniques to overcome chronic stress, regain control, restore your energy and your focus by Amber Pierce
I love when burnout books tell you what you can expect in the title. While I'm all for an ambiguous fiction title, I prefer mental health books to be straight forward. Burnout Recovery is great to read if you feel similar because it breaks down how you can tell if you're about to become burned out, the stages of burnout, and there's even a quiz that helps you gauge how stressed you are.
From Burnt Out to Fired Up: Reignited Your Passion for Teaching by Morgane Michael
Although I'm not a teacher, I decided to read this book because I think it's important to recognize that everyone is capable of feeling burned out. I have a few associates who have talked about feeling stressed while teaching and it made me realize how much teachers can be taken for granted.
What From Burnt Out to Fired Up does is help teachers rediscover their passion and joy for teaching while learning to set important boundaries.
Therapist Burnout: Your Guide to Recovery and a Joyful, Sustainable Private Practice by Kelly Higdon & Miranda Palmer
This also goes without saying, but therapists are also capable of feeling the effects of burnout. As often as I rely on my therapist to help me work through my own issues, I sometimes wonder how she takes care of herself while helping clients. This book gives a little more insight into how therapists can do jus that without losing their desire to be of service to others.
Fist Pumps by Scott MacDiarmid, MD
Fist Pumps was another personal read because my sister is a Pharmacist and I've heard many stories about how medical industry professionals can be treated poorly by patients. I think it's easy for people in this profession and others to remember that they're worthy of rest, but Fist Pumps is a book that says, "No more!"
It's a great gift to give someone who works in the medical industry IMO.
I'm So Effing Tired: A Proven Plan to Beat Burnout, Boost Your Energy, and Reclaim Your Lifeby Amy Shah, MD
I'll be honest — the title alone convinced me to buy this book because I'm pretty sure I've screamed the explicit version of it within the past week. Aside from stating the obvious, Amy Shah, MD also asks you to consider how your diet may be affecting the way your body responds to stress. She even shares a hormone-balancing tea that's actually pretty tasty if I say so myself.
Brilliant Burnout: How Successful, Driven Women Can Stay in the Game by Rewiring Their Bodies, Brains and Hormones by Nisha Jackson, PhD
I can't get enough of evidence-based burnout books like Brilliant Burnout. After realizing my stress has been affecting my body, reading this book helped me realize that everything matters internally. Nisha Jackson, PhD does an excellent job of describing how to optimize one's hormones, brain, and body so that burnout can start taking a backseat.
Mommy Burnout: How to Reclaim Your Life and Raise Healthier Children in the Process by Dr. Sheryl Ziegler
I'm not going to lie — becoming a mom made me question my sanity because it can be freaking tough to navigate. Even if you do have support, there are moments when guilt and burnout threaten to burn everything down, leaving you feeling exhausted. But, Mommy Burnout has been helping me take a moment to catch my breath so I don't lose my mind.
It's also an encouraging read that wants moms to get past this idea of being perfect because it honestly doesn't exist and can cause more harm than good. In other words, it's like reading something your own therapist may tell you.
Love Your Kids Without Losing Yourself: 5 Steps to Banish Guilt and Beat Burnout When You Already Have Too Much To Do by Dr. Morgan Cutlip
Because I can't get enough of mommy burnout books, I decided to read Love Your Kids Without Losing Yourself for good measure. If it's not obvious, I'm literally sick of mommy guilt and burnout on top of stress I feel in other areas of my life. What I can say is that this book helps moms to acknowledge how we feel without placing the blame on our kids. It's easy to take our frustrations out on others in general, but little people don't deserve our inability to self-regulate our emotions.
Reset: Live a Grace-Paced Life in a Burnout Culture by David Murray
Burnout culture is absolutely real and it's threatening to hinder how we live our lives + interact with others. While this is a Christian-based book for men, they're certainly important to consider because burnout isn't impartial to a particular group of people. I bought this to help my S.O. navigate his toxic work culture, expectations placed on him by society, and family. So far he's said that it's helping him to realize the importance of slowing down to allow more grace to enter his mind.
Burnout Immunity: How Emotional Intelligence Can Help You Build Resilience and Heal Your Relationship with Work by Kandi Wiens, Ed.D. - Available For Purchase April 23, 2024
This book isn't out yet, but I had to include it on this list because it's a highly anticipated read. Aside from learning about the what burnout is and how to reset our hormones so we can minimize our chance of experiencing it, emotional intelligence is also important to be aware of. Kandi Wiens, Ed.D. specifically switched careers to understand why so many are struggling with burnout at work and her incredible discoveries have led to Burnout Immunity.
Are you ready to add a few burnout books to your kindle this year?
Brit + Co may at times use affiliate links to promote products sold by others, but always offers genuine editorial recommendations.
Lead images via Amazon
