Prone to Burnout w/ Ashley Wynn-Grime Part 1

The pressure is real.?

While it’s common for women and business professionals to brush off feelings of stress, overwhelm, and exhaustion and just ‘get on with it,’ we must recognize that burnout is a major threat to our wellness - and, in turn, our careers.?

So, how do we prevent burnout from derailing our mental health and professional lives?

Ashley Wynn-Grime BSN, RN, a native of Baltimore, Maryland, is a registered nurse with over 12 years of experience and the founder of Cannabis Nursing Solutions, LLC. Her work empowers patients and nursing professionals through impactful educational medical programs, promoting diverse representation and increased resiliency. She has trailblazed non-traditional cannabis patient care programs in Maryland, holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing, a Master's degree in Nurse Education, and is a certified Lean Six Sigma Black Belt. Ashley is also the author of "Stigmatized," a memoir that empowers nurses to build a lifestyle that supports their overall well-being.

She shared some powerful reasons why it’s important to look inward to minimize work stress before it leads to burnout - and simple activities that can help us achieve groundedness.

First, make room for your emotions.

Ashley emphasizes the importance of acknowledging our emotions, especially in a society that values productivity over self-care.

“It's widespread, it's pervasive. A lot of our work environments do not support a lot of flexibility. And the most simple example of that is just time constraint. You have to show up here at this time and be here from this time to this time…and if I'm feeling anxious in a moment or sad…there's really not a lot of wiggle room to address that.”

To counter this, Ashley suggests recognizing when we're neglecting self-care and making a conscious effort to prioritize our emotional well-being.

“I think the important part is to be able to recognize when that's occurring, when you're making the choice to neglect your self-care in a moment.”?

Listen to your inner voice.

Ashley explained that we often prioritize external pressures over our own emotional needs. As a result, we tend to find comfort in doing things out of habit - even when those habits don’t serve our emotional needs.

“Emotion is supposed to be a compass for us, but because we're so dysregulated, it doesn't serve us that way. Sometimes, the internal chatter doesn't match the external chatter. And so the problem is that now you're in conflict with yourself… It's a mixture of ‘Well, what do I listen to? What do I do next? How do I make sure that I stay a whole person myself based on my external environment?”?

So how do we quiet that noise and tune in to our needs? Ashley says we need to ground ourselves.

Easy ways to ground yourself for inner calm.

When we find ourselves spiraling, Ashley suggests this simple way to tune into your inner voice: Breathe. It’s something we don’t often allow ourselves to do.

“We're always caught up in our self-talk and in our routines, and the chatter is taking over.” Ashley says that pausing to breathe allows us to increase our self-awareness.

Another suggestion? Doing anything that connects you to the earth, such as jewelry-making with natural stones.

“It's very quirky, but creating jewelry…is very grounding. Stones and anything that comes from the earth have a high vibrational energy that we get to engage with, which is very, very grounding. That's just one simple activity that's actually really, really simple to do.”

You can also try standing barefoot in the grass or on the concrete…or simply reaching out and touching a tree.?

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“If there's a tree nearby, just go and stand and touch it…It doesn't have to be weird. You can literally just walk up to a tree and put your hand on it. Nobody will ever pay you any attention.”

These simple actions can bring you back to center and help you pay attention to your inner voice.

Self-care is key to achieving success.

In today's demanding work environments, it is crucial to find holistic ways to cope, especially when facing the challenges of racial and sexual discrimination. Taking care of our emotional and mental well-being is essential for achieving success without burning out. By prioritizing self-care, we can fully embrace our authentic selves and tap into our power and potential. That's why I host Being Brown At Work Live?, where you’ll find valuable tips and tools to achieve your professional goals. Join me every 1st and 3rd Tuesday of the month at 6:30 PM EST on Facebook, YouTube, and LinkedIn Live. See you there!