#wsuv

As the term is coming to an end burnout is a word that keeps popping up. I'm currently in a work, stress, and health psychology class so I'm learning all about burnout. I learned I am currently dealing with burnout right now. It's a lot. I was no stranger to procrastinating but this is on a whole nother level. As a Capricorn (/s) I deal with a lot of perfectionism. So on top of the burnout, I've also been feeling guilty. I tell myself I'll just try to take a quick 20 minute power nap but it's so hard to get up if I even end up falling asleep. Most of the time I spend the 20 minutes feeling guilty and worrying myself so much I end up staying up and taking another 20 minutes and so on.

I think there's a lot contributing to my burnout. I have an autoimmune disease and other chronic illnesses which lead to a lot of fatigue and brain fog. Being neurodivergent doesn't help. I'm also taking 5 classes compared to last term when I only took 4. Throughout this burnout and the process of dealing with it, I've learned that I really need to give myself a break. I don't always need to turn in work that is A+, sometimes it's better to just turn in work and get some sleep than stay up all night reading the same essay hoping something new comes to mind. I've been talking to a lot of students that have been at WSUV longer and they feel the same way.

You really have to make time for self-care, because if you don't your body will make you make time. Burnout is something that most students go through and it's important to deal with it before you get stuck in it. Over the summer my boyfriend's parents are taking us out of the state and I'm excited to get some birdwatching in. However, I can't wait till the summer to try to counteract my burnout. We have to try to find small things to do every day. I try to get in as much backyard birding as I can. Even if it's just staring out the window as I'm brushing my teeth. You have to find ways t o give yourself little breaks daily even if you can't leave the house.

I’ve been trying for almost a year now to define art in a way that includes architecture, physical art (paintings, sculptures, mark-making), and writing (stories). Today in DTC class, our teacher (college professor to be technical) asked “what is art” (wasn’t at all surprised that the room’s only creative writing child was the first hand in the air) and completely out of nowhere I answered “Art is the manifestation of creativity.” The room was in silent awe for a minute, and no one disputed it (though they added that ‘since art and beauty are in the eye of the beholder, audience takes precedence over author & intention’). After a second’s blank shock, I realized this was perfect. Later in class, our teacher was talking about different cultural contexts such as technology, and he said “technology is the manifestation of creativity enabling media/art, or enabling the manifestation of creativity.” This blew the minds of the young adults (and a few older adults) in the room, and I thought it was awesome so I made a couple memes for it. Hope you enjoy! It inspired me to write more stories and I enjoyed the ride home so much more. :)