Podcaster, entrepreneur, therapist and founder of Savasana Collective Sheena Schuy, shares her throughs on wellness data. And, whether you can actually have too much of a good thing.
We are in the era of information overload. Anytime we are online, on social media or our phones we have news headlines vying for our attention, endless messaging apps, never ending ads and now our health data too.
From seeing how much time you had spent online that week, to how many steps you have done, how you have slept, and what your calories input/ output is doing, we have never had so much information at our fingertips. Yet, many of us have also never been so burnt out from it all because there is just no switching off.
There is no doubt that data can be good in some circumstances. It helps you track what is going on with your life and health after all. And, as they say, “if you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it”. However, for the sake of your mental health, sometimes it is best not to know. For example, for those of you who have measured your sleep, have you ever thought you had a good sleep only to see that your data is telling you otherwise? Did that then impact how you felt for the rest of the day? See what I mean? Sometimes we don’t need to have all the answers. Sometimes it is best to shut out all the noise.
According to Beyond Blue, 1 in 4 Australians will experience anxiety in their lifetime. While mhfa reports that 61% of Australians have reported feeling burnt out compared to a global average of 48%. That is a lot of people who are not feeling their best. So what are some things we can do to minimse burn out and anxiety? Here are my top tops.
Shut out as much noise as possible. Between work, studying, parenting and anything else we have going on in our lives, most of us are pretty busy. We don’t need to add any more busyness to our lives. Therefore I would recommend setting digital boundaries, be it that you put your phone away at 7: 30 or 8 pm each night, and delete some of the apps that are vying for our attention. You don’t need to track and record everything you are doing! Pick one thing you enjoy tracking and just stick with that.
Take breaks, even if they are small ones. Giving 110% to everything you do at all times is an easy route to crash and burn. Like with exercise, where we work and then recover, we should do that in our workday too. Even if we are just getting up every 2 hours for a 5 minute stretch away from your screens including your phone. These micro breaks over the day add up to more regulation by the time you clock off.
Know the signs. If you are starting to see that you are feeling exhausted, anxious or burnt out, allow yourself. Pull back and acknowledge that it’s okay even if it is uncomfortable (as the high achiever many of you are.). Your 80% is most people’s 150%. You’re good at what you do, so allow yourself a break. Because if you don’t, as I’ve seen time and time again in my holistic psychology practice, your body will often force you stop through unexplained illnesses, poor immune system, organ issues and of course burnout.
About Sheena Schuy
Sheena Schuy is a therapist, podcast host, entrepreneur and mum who understands a thing or two about burnout. Having experienced it herself, she turned her attention to coming up with a solution to ensure her business continued to thrive without her mental health and family continuing to suffer. The solution? A 20-hour business week. But while this may seem like an impossible ask for a business owner, with the right systems in place and a change in mindset, it can happen, and Sheena can help.
Sheena is also the founder of Savasana Collective – Holistic Psychology and Business Mentorship, where she has worked with some of Australia’s top women in business, media, c-suite execs, athletes and health professionals, helping them achieve their business goals without suffering from burnout and anxiety as payment.
