How to deal with Stress and Burnout?

What are Stress and Burnout?

Stress and burnout are two very common problems that can happen to anyone. The relationship between stress and burnout is complex. Stress is a natural response that our body has in order to help us deal with threatening or demanding situations. It can also be caused by other factors, such as:

• Family issues
• Work overload 
• A physical condition
• Relationship stress
• Financial problems. 

However, when it's prolonged and exceeds our ability to cope with it, it can lead to burnout. Burnout is a state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion or depletion. It can affect people differently depending on their personality, social life, and work environment. 
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Stress and Exhaustion Symptoms

Identifying stress and exhaustion symptoms can be difficult as they are not always present in every person. However, we can see the following signs:

• Begins to feel exhausted, unhappy, and uninterested in things they usually enjoy.
  
• Headaches, muscle tension, and feeling tired all the time, despite getting enough sleep or oversleeping
  
• Depression and anxiety symptoms such as irritability, guilt and shame, anger, fatigue, and poor concentration
  
• Loss of identity or sense of self-worth, feeling like you're not good enough
  

Best ways to deal with Stress and Burnout?

To avoid stress and burnout, it’s important to find ways to reduce the amount of stress you experience in your daily life. If you do not deal with it at the right time it may lead to health issues. Here are some ways to reduce your stress:

• If you are stressed because of workload or other work-related stress, it is essential to take time away from work to relax and spend time with family and friends. 
  
• Improve your overall health and well-being by exercising regularly, doing Meditation, or doing yoga.
  
• Make sure that you get enough sleep each night. If you do not get enough sleep it may lead to restlessness and health issues.
  
• Eat a healthy diet as it is not only essential for physical health but also mental wellbeing.
  
• Connect with others, like friends or family, on a regular basis. 
  
• “Make art! Art can be a great way to help re-energize, reduce stress and anxiety, and focus on the positive. This is great news for artists!”
  

How can art help relieve stress?

Art can be used to help relieve stress and burnout. It can be used in a variety of ways: to express feelings and thoughts, as a way to process emotions, or as a way to create something new. Art can be used to help with burnout, stress relief, and self-expression. The benefits of creative expression can be found in all disciplines, including painting, music, writing, dance, and theater. Art is even a form of therapy to help cope with mental health issues. ​

Stress and Working Artists

For working artists, the stress-reduction benefits of art-making can go hand in hand with one’s work. But it is easy to constantly feel pulled away from the creative work by the business side of being a working artist. When that happens not only are you unable to take advantage of the stress-reducing benefits of art making, but you may also feel additional stress because you aren’t accomplishing your creative goals. When you begin to feel bogged down in business-based tasks, and find yourself neglecting your art-making practice, take a moment to really look at what you have going on in your schedule. 

Are there things you can take out? Are you bogging yourself down with busy work that isn’t really getting you anywhere? Are you subconsciously avoiding making art because you are afraid of failure, or you aren’t good enough? Dealing with these issues can be challenging, especially if you are dealing with them alone. Finding a supportive community can be great for helping you learn to navigate the challenges of being a working artist. If you are a female western artist, Cowgirl Artists of America may be a great community for you! We are opening enrollment on Aug 1, 2022 through Aug 15, 2022. Being a part of CGA allows you to take the advantage of our fantastic community and gives you access to a variety of experts. Have a question about enrollment? Email us at info@cowgirlartistsofamerica.org

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