Music as I wrote this blog: Shake It Out by Florence and the Machine

First of, before I jump in: Happy Mother’s Day to all who are mothers, mother figures, and caregivers in every form. Today we also hold space for those grieving, estranged, or navigating complicated feelings around this day—you are seen and not alone.

It’s 2026, and every year—well, actually, every month, for as long as I can remember—we’re told the same thing: take care of yourself. Practice self-care. Avoid burnout. Treat yourself. Don’t run yourself into the ground.

As a therapist, I hear this language everywhere. I hear it from other therapists, former coworkers, family members, and clients talking about anxiety, burnout, trauma, and the pressure to “do self-care correctly.” At this point, if we kept a running tally of how often we hear these phrases, one could argue they’re mentioned almost as frequently as Heated Rivalry—the gay hockey romance that, somehow, everyone seems to have an opinion about. (And for the record, yes, it’s excellent. I said what I said.)

But back to burnout.

Because somewhere along the way, this very real, very serious experience has become—dare I say it—a bit of a trend. Overused. Oversaturated. Almost as common as the number of people driving a Ford Bronco or Jeep Wrangler around Charleston and Mount Pleasant. (No shade to the Bronco and Wrangler drivers—they’re great vehicles, and clearly having a moment.)

And I couldn’t help but wonder…

Is self-care quietly becoming just another chore?

Have we taken something meant to support our mental health and turned it into yet another thing we can feel like we’re failing at?

And what even is burnout, really?

Is it the kind of tired where you cancel plans, stay home, and scroll through Netflix until you fall asleep? Or is it something slower—something that builds over time?

The kind of burnout I see in therapy—especially when working with anxiety and trauma—isn’t usually loud or obvious. It accumulates. It’s what happens when the energy you keep pouring into your work, your relationships, and your responsibilities never quite makes its way back to you.

Until one day, it catches up.

And maybe, here in Charleston, Mount Pleasant, Daniel Island, or anywhere else, it doesn’t always look like a dramatic collapse.

Sometimes it just looks like functioning…on empty.

What Is Burnout?

Burnout is a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion caused by prolonged stress.

It can show up as:

• Feeling emotionally drained

• Losing motivation

• Becoming detached or cynical

• Struggling to concentrate

• Feeling like even small tasks take enormous effort

Burnout symptoms can overlap with anxiety and depression, which is why many people don’t realize what they’re experiencing until they’ve been running on empty for quite some time.

It’s not just being tired.

It’s more like your internal system hitting its limit and quietly shutting down in response.

Like a phone that doesn’t just reach low battery—it powers off completely. And even when you plug it back in, it doesn’t immediately turn on. It needs time. Recovery. Reconnection.

How Do We End Up Here?

Burnout rarely arrives all at once. More often, it builds quietly in the background while life appears perfectly functional from the outside.

In therapy, especially when working with anxiety and trauma, I often see burnout develop in highly capable people.

The ones who show up.
The ones who push through.
The ones who are used to being the steady one.

Over time, the pattern becomes familiar:

• Saying yes when there’s no space left.

• Ignoring early signs of exhaustion because there’s still too much to do.

• Treating rest as something to earn rather than something required.

It’s not one dramatic moment.

It’s a thousand small moments where recovery gets delayed.

Until eventually, the system catches up.

Not because someone is weak, but because no system is designed to run without repair.

A Different Way to Understand Burnout

Fun fact: some of my favorite childhood films came from Studio Ghibli. And when it comes to burnout, I always think of one of my favorites: Kiki's Delivery Service.

There’s a moment in the film when Kiki loses her ability to fly.

Not because she suddenly forgets how.

She knew how to fly the moment she climbed onto her broom and set off to discover a new city where she could help others. And yes, she had some logistics to figure out. She’s gifted, but her first takeoff was nowhere near the level of a seasoned pilot flying for Delta Air Lines.

But because something she once loved—flying—begins to feel like pressure.

Like expectation.

Like work.

And in losing that connection, she loses access to what once felt natural and effortless.

So she steps back.

She rests.

She reconnects.

Not with the task itself, but with why she loved it in the first place.

And slowly, her ability returns—not by forcing it, but by restoring something internal that had been depleted.

Most importantly, some part of Kiki still believed her ability to fly was there. It wasn’t gone for good.

That’s the part of this work I love most.

Sometimes my clients feel like they’ve lost their powers entirely. But when they show up to therapy, it’s often because some part of them already knows their ability to “fly” still exists.

I love watching clients reconnect with their core beliefs and values, because there’s something incredibly powerful about finding your way back to yourself.

So What Now?

Burnout isn’t always about stopping everything.

Sometimes it’s about noticing when something meaningful has started to feel like a chore and giving yourself permission to step back before you lose access to it entirely.

Not because you’re failing at self-care.

But because you’re human, and human capacity has limits.

And maybe the real work isn’t doing more to fix burnout.

It’s noticing it early enough that you don’t have to completely lose your ability to fly before you rest.

Find something light, light, light.

Something that takes your foot off the pedal.

Something that feels effortless and free of pressure.

Maybe that looks like:

• Drawing

• Putting your toes in the sand

• Spending an hour away from your phone and connecting with nature

• Or, my personal favorite, spending 20 minutes on the floor playing with my dog, Charlie

It’s amazing how something so simple can help us refuel.

We often assume self-care has to be extravagant—a luxury vacation, a spa retreat, a perfectly curated wellness routine.

But I think that’s one of the biggest misconceptions out there.

Sometimes self-care is simply finding 20 minutes that belong entirely to you.

And what you do with those 20 minutes can be the same every time, or completely different.

That’s the beauty of it.

Burnout Therapy in Charleston, SC

If you’re feeling emotionally exhausted, overwhelmed, or disconnected from the parts of your life that once felt meaningful, therapy can help.

I provide therapy for burnout, anxiety, and trauma for adults in Charleston, Mount Pleasant, Daniel Island, and throughout South Carolina via telehealth.

Together, we can explore what’s draining your energy, reconnect with what matters most, and help you find your way back to yourself.