Very Tired
I got so burned out from trying to graduate from theater school in 2021, that I didn’t make art for 2 years. When I got let go from my last day job, I started making art again and even sort of kept the momentum going once I found another day job. Unfortunately, I got burned out again and am now not only several months behind on giving a collaborator pages but am pausing all work because I need to seek medical treatment. How do I prevent myself from going back to square one without continuing to get burnt out?

Dear Very Tired,

First off, I commend you. We work in a profession that pushes the punishing idea that our work is the only thing that matters. Good on you for rejecting this. Yes, theater making is vital and amazing, but your life and your health are more so. And I love that you’re taking a pause. We should all take pauses from our art making. Getting off the hamster wheel allows us to see the world in new ways, which invariably enlivens and deepens the work to come. 

But, how to not fall back into old patterns when you do come back? Because when you pick up your pen again, it’s only natural that you’ll be anxious. How do I get back on the horse? How do I not get burned out again? Here’s what I do to mitigate these anxieties. When it’s time to come back to the work, I give myself permission to begin by taking the tiniest steps. I write daily (or, let’s be honest, try to write daily). But the writing, or even just noodling about writing, can be for 10 minutes. Because 10 minutes a day, day after day, allows my strength to come back, and my ideas to rekindle. By having small daily tasks, you climb upward, step by step, focused on the ground in front of you. You’re not looking up at the mountain, frozen at the seeming impossibility that you’ll ever reach the top. But you will. One step at a time, one day at time may be a teeth-gnashing cliché, but I’ve also found it to be true.

Finally, when you are ready to start writing again, be patient with yourself. Be as kind to yourself as you would be to a friend going through the same thing you are. 

Warmly,

Fefu

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