It is so ironic to admit but I have been in complete burnout twice as a yoga teacher. Doesn’t it sound funny when you hear someone acknowledge they are burned out and then you find out they are a yoga teacher!!! Burnout can happen to anyone—it doesn’t discriminate from one career to another—but it’s rather weird to hear a yoga teacher share that they are at the end of their energy! Usually the first thing people say is, “What’s going on? You’re a yoga teacher, you should know how to relax!” Yes, that is so true, however teaching yoga can take a lot of energy, especially if you are not aware of how to protect your own energy. Or you are starting your own yoga business.
In my case I experienced my first burnout when I had my own studio—the first year was really tough to get it off the ground and fill up the classes, but once it got super successful after a few years, it was really challenging to keep up the pace. I offered classes seven days a week and I was on the mat every day—no matter if I was sick, if it was my birthday or whatever—I needed to be at the studio.
Compounding the stress was the fact that I am a highly sensitive person, and often when I touched a person to help them into a pose, I felt what they were feeling. And if they were in pain, I could feel that pain. In the first few years, I did not know how to shield myself of other people’s energy and felt like a sponge, and I soaked it all up. Quite often I felt exhausted at the end of the day, even though I loved my job so very much.
Being an empath is something that requires learning how to adjust so you don’t take on everyone’s energies. It really didn’t matter that I was a yoga teacher, I could have been in any career, but I happen to be a yoga teacher and I touch people as part of my work.
I was also burned out on a physical level because doing so many classes can totally wear you out because your body never gets any rest. I felt flattered that so many people wanted to come to my classes and therefore offered more and more classes and my schedule was packed. I did not realize that I no longer had a social life because I was on the mat teaching every night while my friends went out to the movies or to dinner. I always had to decline when they asked me to join because I was too busy teaching.
It took me a few years to understand that I needed to have at least one free night per week and therefore took one day off on a regular basis. My students were not happy about that because they did not want to accept a substitute, but it was necessary for my own balance and self-care.
Once I learned techniques to protect myself before I went into a class, and also adding some Yin Yoga poses into all of my yang-focused classes, my body slowly started to regenerate again.
I also find it very important to be authentic when you teach. If you pretend to be somebody you are not, it can be very exhausting and you can burn out easily because you are not real in what you do.
Here is one of my favorite techniques to protect yourself before your work on an energetical level with other people.
At night, before I go to bed, I practice this chakra meditation to clear myself of all the energies I picked up throughout the day.
On a regular basis I cultivate stillness and ensure I have time where I am just by myself, with no other people around. This is not always easy when you have a family, but for me, it is essential. I need the time to listen to my soul. Your soul will tell you when you are not on track anymore, and if you will not listen, it tends to send you an ailment or a burnout, so you have to pull yourself back and listen to it again. So my words of advice are to make sure you care for yourself daily, so you stay in touch with yourself and your personal needs. If you don’t take care of yourself, you won’t have the energy to give the quality teachings you want to offer your students.
