Are you living in one of the four F’s?

Burnout and the Survival Response: The Unseen Connection

Have you ever felt like life is one relentless rollercoaster, with burnout looming just around the bend?

So many people aren’t aware of the deeper connection between burnout and our body’s survival responses: fight, flight, freeze, and even fawn. (And how these can be deeply hardwired into our nervous system from childhood experiences.)

The Fight Response: Picture this: Your never-ending to-do list feels like an opponent in the boxing ring. You’re in the “fight” mode, ready to tackle stress head-on. Or even worse you constantly feel under threat and that others will attack you.

This creates a guardedness and defensiveness that never really allows you to be able to deeply relax, let alone experience true intimacy in our human relationships.

While this response can be a lifesaver in short bursts, chronic stress can make us feel like we’re constantly in the ring, wearing us down over time.

The Flight Response: Ever wanted to just run away from it all? That’s the “flight” response at play. It’s like trying to escape a swarm of bees, except those bees are your responsibilities.

Continuously dodging stressors, or trying to avoid deeper painful emotions from past trauma and experiences through “workaholism, drinking, gambling and other addictions” can leave you feeling like you’re running a marathon with no finish line.

The Freeze Response: Sometimes, stress pushes our body to the limits to hit the pause button on life. It’s the “freeze” response, akin to the feeling that you can’t move or speak when you are having a scary dream.

While it might provide temporary relief, through numbness, withdrawal and zoning out, it can lead to a cycle of inaction, feeling unmotivated, paralysed, stuck and blocked in life and feeling so overwhelmed, you don’t know what to do, or have the energy to change things.

The Fawn Response: The “fawn” response is a bit like becoming a people-pleaser on overdrive. Avoiding conflicts at all costs to keep the peace may seem noble, but it often means putting your own needs on the back burner.

This can lead to an exhausting dance of catering to everyone else, leading to experiencing anger and resentment, but also terrified of disappointing and letting others down.

Burnout frequently emerges from these survival responses being stuck in overdrive. Our bodies are wired to manage stress in short bursts, not to endure a constant barrage.

But here’s the silver lining! You hold the power to break free from this cycle, to heal mentally, emotionally, physically, and spiritually.

Join the 28 Day Mini Thrive Course!

This transformative program is your compass to navigate the maze of survival responses, understand their impact, and master strategies to handle stress and heal your burnout.

Let’s journey together, break the chains of burnout, and embrace a life where vitality, joy, and equilibrium reign supreme. Click the link below to embark on our 28 Day Mini Thrive Course!

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Don’t let burnout dictate your story. It’s time to rewrite the narrative, to rediscover your well-being, and to thrive!

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