Is time off really enough? How to recover without burning out again

Burnout isn’t always solved by taking time off — especially if nothing really changes when you come back.

In this episode, Denzil shares a powerful question from psychotherapist and clinic owner Roxanne Francis: “What’s going to change this time when you go back?” It’s a simple prompt that opens the door to rethinking how we work, recover, and protect our energy before burnout hits.

Denzil speaks openly in this episode, reflecting on her own work life and sharing practical ways to make it more sustainable, with ideas like:

• Treating rest as part of the job, not a reward
• Bringing small vacation joys into everyday routines
• Making the first day back softer and slower
• Experimenting with fresh approaches to meetings, tools, and personal goals

For anyone juggling a full plate, whether it’s in healthcare, running a clinic, or navigating life in general, this episode offers thoughtful, down-to-earth ideas for making the everyday a little lighter.

Got your own tips for keeping burnout at bay? Send them to ⁠[e-mail]⁠.And if you enjoy episodes like this, ⁠subscribe for more reflections from Denzil⁠.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
Hi, it's Denzel and it's time for some real talk.
I used to think that thesolution was simple.
When work and life and kids hadme frayed at the edges, I'd
book time off, step away, andthe plan was to come back
restored and recharged Problemsolved.
But the truth is, once I gotback, within a few days or weeks

(00:30):
I'd return to the sameoverwhelmed state of being
allegedly in need of a vacation.
I think this has been happeningmost of my life.
Part of it is that's how I roll, but it's also something more.
That's why something the lovelyRoxanne Francis said to me
during a recent customer panelreally stuck with me.
She was talking about how,after taking stress leave, she'd

(00:53):
come back to work and findherself back in the same cycle.
Then her doctor asked her aquestion that hit home what's
going to change this time whenyou go back?
And that's when she realizedshe didn't need a short break.
She needed something to reallychange about how she was

(01:13):
operating overall.
It's a great insight, but it'sway easier said than done.
What's fascinating to me is thatsummer might actually be a
really good time to think aboutyour workday.
Stick with me here.
When things are generallyslower, you can take a moment
and ask yourself what's causingme stress, what's not working
right now and what could shift.
What can I do ahead of burnout,before it creeps in?

(01:34):
Here's a few ideas for you.
Try treating recovery as partof the job.
In healthcare, we all know thatthe body can't heal without
rest, but the same is true ofday-to-day life.
It seems to me that you can'thave high performance without
recovery.
What I'm thinking is that youdefinitely don't need to earn

(01:56):
rest only after you've runyourself into the ground.
Instead, schedule it into yourregular routine.
Maybe this is well known, butit's a good reminder to create
small, regular breaks throughoutthe week that let you breathe,
reset and stay well.
Bring the good stuff back withyou.
What did you do on your lastvacation that helped you feel

(02:19):
like you again?
Was it being outside, reading agood book, or maybe making
home-cooked meals For me, when Ican, I cook on Sundays.
I can't always do it, in fact,if I'm being honest, I usually
don't but I know that I lovecooking for my family, and when
I take a Sunday afternoonlistening to music and chopping,

(02:41):
stirring, tasting, plating,there's some kind of magic
happening for me.
If I have any thought thatmight resonate with someone
reading this.
It's to start small and startwith where you feel joy.
Cooking on Sundays does take mea few hours when it's done
right, but I'm not sure if it'sthe right time.
When I can't do that, I lie onthe floor with my legs up the

(03:01):
wall and my eyes closed andbreathe for like four minutes,
because all I have is fourminutes.
Sometimes I stretch, sometimesI convince myself I'm going to
get stronger at push-ups and Itry a few.
Sometimes I just text a friend.
Okay, I veered very far fromweekend and vacation things, but
the point is that littlemoments can hold a lot of power

(03:22):
and it's so interesting how easyit is to forget that.
Try making the re-entry softer.
Another idea I love is to rampback up slowly and make your
re-entry softer.
Sometimes all I can get in isan extra hour on my first day
back to go a little slower, butI take it and I revel in that

(03:43):
hour.
And when I say take your time,I mean really take your time.
I find that when I jump backinto things too quickly I don't
get the chance to processeverything I'm jumping back into
and that doesn't help anyone.
Experiment with change, butwithout overhauling everything.
Experiment with change, butwithout overhauling everything.
This idea is simple Try newstuff, see what happens.

(04:07):
It mixes it up.
It adds freshness to life.
Here are some things that I'mcurrently experimenting with.
First off, meeting structure,meeting timing, attendees and
cadence are never set in stone.
I definitely see them asstaples of communication, but as
time passes I like to trydifferent setups.

(04:27):
If I meet with a mentor monthly, sometimes I change the time in
between our chats.
This can also look likechanging up team meetings each
week, changing the day or timeor operating on a rotating
agenda.
Basically, I'm trying tobreathe new life into things
that are very regular.
I'm also experimenting with newtools.

(04:49):
I think we're all aware that Iwork in a tech company, so we
have access to a lot ofinformation about tools, new
tools coming out and new ways ofworking with them.
I find it super helpful to keepan eye on how these tools can
be used to take the load off ofall of us.
Obviously, jane is one of myfavorites and there's always new

(05:09):
stuff to explore that helpstake the load off.
For example and I cannotbelieve I'm saying this out loud
I just learned about a chat GPTfeature where you can talk into
it instead of typing like Siri,but with all the depth of a
chat GPT conversation.
I can just speak, no typingneeded so cool.

(05:30):
I'm also setting new personalgoals.
Even with a firehose of newthings coming my way, something
that helps me is setting freshpersonal goals that I know
impact my health and well-being.
My recent example is startingto work with a nutrition coach.
We don't weigh and track foodbecause that just causes me more
stress, but she has this coolsystem where I send her photos

(05:52):
of my meals and we talk abouttips for creating more balance,
substituting with morenutritious options, water intake
and on and on.
It's just good stuff that givesme a solid and, for me, a
goal-oriented reason to stepaway from the intensity of my
life, even for just a moment.

(06:12):
Maybe this whole episode feels alittle silly, but I've
literally had to check in withmy therapist, family and friends
so many times on keepingeveryday life manageable and I
feel like it's possible thatsome of you out there are
experiencing the same.
Am I right?
Would love to know your tipsand tricks as well.
Send me an email at frontdeskat janeapp and share some

(06:33):
thoughts.
Well, that's all for me, headedto a leg up the wall moment.
Now you got this.