Reducing Burnout When Working From Home: A Survival Guide
Remember when WFH sounded like the ultimate dream? No commute, PJ bottoms all day, and your dog as your new cubicle-mate. Fast-forward a few years and—surprise!—back-to-back Zooms, blurred work-life lines, and the sense that you literally live at the office can leave even seasoned remote pros feeling fried. Burnout isn’t just about long hours; it’s about the drain that happens when your energy output outpaces the things that refill your tank. Let’s break down some simple, “works-in-the-real-world” moves to keep that fire from burning you out.
Create a remote worker beginning and ending ritual
Beginning Ritual: Yep, you still need a transition ritual. Before you crack open Slack, do something that tells your brain, “Workday begins now.” Five minutes of stretching, a neighborhood lap with a podcast, or even making a fancy latte can do the trick. The point is to create a mental doorway between “home” and “office” so your work mode isn’t always lurking in the kitchen.
Ending Ritual: Choose a consistent “last task”—maybe writing tomorrow’s to-do list or clearing your desktop—and then physically close the laptop. Throw on sneakers, blast a feel-good playlist, and do a five-minute victory dance around the living room. Celebrating the daily finish line trains your brain to release work worries.
Designate tiny boundaries
Not everyone has the luxury of a private office, but you can still carve out micro-zones. A specific chair, a candle you only light for meetings, noise-canceling headphones—anything that signals, “When this is on, I’m at work.” Physical cues help family or roommates respect your space and help your brain clock out when the cue disappears.
You may also want to examine your phone/email use and consider how often you think or discuss work outside of work. Do you need to have your email inbox linked to your phone? If you work in a hyper-structured corporate setting, do you need to watch Severance? When out with friends, how much of your updates revolve around your job (compared to your life outside of work)? Consider the mental bandwidth you have to think about work (or things closely related to your job) outside of work. As many times as Showtime’s Couples Therapy has been recommended to me, I know that I don’t have the capacity to watch someone else do therapy in my free time. I just don’t.
Time-box the invisible tasks
Answering “quick” DMs, skimming email threads, or tweaking slides after dinner all nibble away at you. Try batching admin tasks into two or three scheduled blocks. Outside those windows, close the inbox tab (yes, really). This will help you reclaim mental bandwidth and reduce the feeling that you must be “on” 24/7.
Put real breaks on the calendar and honor them
Scrolling TikTok doesn’t count. A legit break means stepping away from screens. Water your plants, do a 10-minute yoga flow, take a deep breath, or eat meals away from your designated workspace—anything that moves your body and rests your eyes. Treat these breaks like non-negotiable meetings with your future-non-burnt-out self.
Upgrade your ergonomics
Neck pain and eye strain are sneaky burnout accelerants. Elevate the laptop, snag a separate keyboard, and adjust lighting to avoid squint-mode. Spend once on a decent chair; save countless chiropractor visits.
Mind the energy, not just the clock & Use PTO before you need it
Classic productivity tips say, “Work in 90-minute blocks,” but everyone’s energy curve is unique. Track when you feel sharp vs. sluggish for a week. Slot heavy thinking tasks in your personal “power hours,” and push lighter admin work to the dips. Working with your rhythm beats muscling through exhaustion.
Don’t forget to use your PTO. Building recovery days into your calendar (i.e., having long weekends and mid-week mental health days) prevents the classic crash-and-burn. Remember: downtime isn’t a luxury; it’s fuel for sustained performance. If you struggle with taking PTO, then scheduling burnout therapy with a provider such as myself can help you unlearn the habit of overworking yourself.
Final Thoughts
Burnout when working from home is real, but it’s beatable. Craft mini-rituals, honor real breaks, optimize your setup, and protect your mental bandwidth. Most importantly, remember you’re a human, not a Wi-Fi-powered robot. Treat your energy like the precious resource it is, and you’ll keep that WFH freedom feeling, well, freeing.
At The Lavender Therapy, I offer burnout therapy in Bryant Park and surrounding areas for women who feel emotionally drained, overextended, and stuck in survival mode, especially those navigating remote or hybrid work. Burnout counseling can help you recognize burnout patterns, set sustainable boundaries, and reconnect with yourself in ways that actually last.
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If working from home has blurred your boundaries and drained your energy, you're not alone. Burnout therapy in New York can help you reclaim balance, set sustainable routines, and rediscover what truly fuels you. You can start your therapy journey with The Lavender Therapy by following these steps:
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