The Energetic Side of Burnout with Amanda Marek

In this episode of the Balance Badass Podcast, we explore burnout recovery from an energetic perspective with Amanda, a former nurse turned Reiki master and owner of Heart in Harmony Healing. 

Amanda shares her personal experience with burnout and how she discovered the importance of Reiki, boundaries, and rest in her recovery. We discuss how energy management can play a vital role in combating burnout and offer practical tips for setting boundaries without guilt. 

Join us as we talk about how taking care of your energy can transform your approach to burnout and overall well-being. 

Check out the detailed show notes (https://tarakermiet.com/podcast/) and leave your thoughts or questions about today's topic. 

To connect with Amanda:

• Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/heart.in.harmony/)
• Website (https://heartinharmony.ca/)

00:00 Introduction and Episode Overview
00:19 Meet Amanda: From Nurse to Reiki Master
03:26 Amanda's Burnout Story and Recovery Journey
09:16 Understanding Reiki and Its Benefits
14:44 The Importance of Energy Management
21:44 Setting Boundaries Without Guilt
31:43 Conclusion and How to Connect with Amanda 

Need a little more balance and a lot more badass in your life? Check out my 1:1 coaching sessions designed to help you tackle your biggest challenges, manage stress, and create a personalized plan for success. Your first 30-minute session is free! Visit tarakermiet.com to get started. 

Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction and Episode Overview
• 1:05 Meet Amanda: From Nurse to Reiki Master
• 4:12 Amanda's Burnout Story and Recovery Journey
• 10:02 Understanding Reiki and Its Benefits
• 15:30 The Importance of Energy Management
• 23:14 Setting Boundaries Without Guilt
• 33:13 Conclusion and How to Connect with Amanda

Transcript

Tara: [00:00:00] All right. Hey everyone. I'm so excited that you're tuning into today's episode because we're taking on burnout recovery from a whole new angle than what we've talked about so far on the podcast. And I'm very excited because we're looking at your energy. Your boundaries and even how you rest. So my guest today is Amanda. She's a nurse turned Reiki meister, meister. Oh my gosh. Reiki master words and the owner of heart in harmony healing. After experiencing burnout herself as a nurse, which no surprise, that's one of the highest burnout careers. Um, but Amanda found her way to recovery using three powerful pillars, Reiki, boundaries, and rest. Now she helps others heal from burnout by reconnecting with their energy and rediscovering their purpose. And I just love that so much. So today we're going to be talking about how burnout isn't just a physical or a mental issue. It's an energetic one too, [00:01:00] how shifting, how you spend and replenish your energy can make a world of difference. me, I have a feeling that you're going to want to take notes on this one and probably revisit this episode as I'm planning on doing that the same for myself. So why don't we just get right into it? And I just want to welcome you Amanda to the Balance Badass podcast.

Amanda: Hi, thank you so much for having me. I'm excited to be here.

Tara: Yeah, so excited to learn from you. And I don't know much about Reiki. So I'm very excited to Dive into that topic. But before we jump into the really fun stuff, I always start my guest interviews with the same question as kind of an icebreaker. And that question is what's something that you're loving in your life right now?

Amanda: Um, to keep it kind of simple, I've been really loving going to hot yoga lately. I've started, like I first started off having it kind of randomly I would go, but now I've really committed to [00:02:00] going regularly, like every week. It's been amazing. I just feel so great afterwards. So I've been loving that. Yeah.

Tara: studio, like in my neighborhood, but we do have one like in the next city over, but we have, um, I think they're called hot works, which is similar, like, but they have different like, Individual rooms that you can do different kinds of workouts.

And I think yoga is one of the options. I personally, this is TMI, but I sweat a lot. So the idea of going into a hot, scares me a lot, but I hear that a lot of people love the recovery and all that kind of stuff. And it's probably really good for your muscles. I would imagine.

Amanda: Feels easier to stretch and everything when you're warmed up like that.

Tara: Yeah. Nice. Well, thanks so much for sharing. I like to ask that question. Um, I think we can get so caught [00:03:00] up in like the hustle and bustle of everything that it's not often that we slow down and really think about like, what's one thing really going well, or, you know, that I'm really jazzed about right now. So definitely

Amanda: Yeah.

Tara: get into burnout. So you have been on both sides. So first, yeah. As a nurse, obviously you've experienced it and now you're someone kind of helping others recover from their own experiences. So would you be willing for the audience just to share your personal burnout story and maybe what led you to explore Reiki as your path of healing?

Amanda: Yeah. So I didn't initially, it wasn't like I was burnt out and then I was like, Oh, I need to Learn Reiki to recover from this. It just kind of happened. But um, so yeah, I got burnt out working as a nurse. Um, I was just Exhausted all the time like it felt like I never had enough time to like catch up on my sleep and stuff Like my days off [00:04:00] would just be me trying to catch up trying to catch up with like my housework and all that And I never I always felt behind Um, didn't really have the energy and the time to like actually be doing the things that I, I love to do.

So I just wasn't very happy in how my life was going. Um, I, yeah, my, I was so exhausted, but I was also judging myself for like resting so much. Like I, I was believing that I was just being lazy, so it was really hard on myself for that. Um, and. Yeah, I didn't really realize that I was burnt out for a while.

Honestly, probably not until I started recovering. And um, I, just through my own growth journey and like, my mentor and who I, like what I was learning in my own personal life, [00:05:00] I was realizing that I was having these limiting beliefs around Resting and

so I started to just allow myself to do what my body was asking me to do. And so I was just allowing myself to rest without that guilt, which allowed me to recover more. And then, um, I started looking at the boundaries too. I realized that like, I was working full time at the time doing night shifts and day shifts, like going back and forth every two weeks.

Um, and I realized like the full time just isn't for me. Like it's too much for me to handle. Even if like my routine was perfect and everything, I would still be exhausted and burnt out. So I really set a boundary there, like, with my time, with how much I work, and I was already

Tara: and I'll see you

Amanda: I could start using the [00:06:00] Reiki on myself to, like, help me recover faster, because it was taking me days after my shifts to recover, but when I gave myself Reiki, I was able to recover a lot faster.

Um, and so then, Yeah, just through some reflecting, I realized,

Tara: Okay.

Amanda: own experiences, and that's how I kind of landed on burnout, because I realized this is something I experienced myself and was able to move through, and I could see all these other people, nurses, and, um, going through burnout themselves, and I realized this was kind of something unique that I could help other people with.

Tara: Yeah, yeah, I love, um, that perspective too, because I think is the best teacher in lives. And

Amanda: Mm

Tara: be able to an experience that you had and know the [00:07:00] challenges and like, you lived it, so you know, like what it felt like in your body and mind and soul, and that relates so much better to, you know, Folks that you're helping versus just kind of coming at someone from just like a surface level perspective.

So does

Amanda: hmm.

Tara: connection with folks. And I think what you, you brought up such a great point about how burnout just kind of like creeps in without us. Knowing a lot of times and

Amanda: Yeah.

Tara: you know, what I've seen a lot too, is that we it away as something else. Like, Oh, I'm just tired or is just a busy season. Um, but you start to recognize like, like you said, like it was taking you days to recover when it, you know, that was probably not typical response in, in a normal kind of situation when you're kind of at equilibrium in your body. Um, and those limiting [00:08:00] beliefs too, that's, I have a framework that I use of explore and the drivers that contribute to our burnout and convictions is one of the C's that I talk about because, Where we think in our mindset is going to determine the choices that we make.

Sometimes the environments that we put ourselves in, you know, the, the conditions that we create around us and like your, your concept of like feeling guilty for resting, that is so common it's not an easy one to overcome, it's not an easy limiting belief to overcome because one, like may not even notice that that's like there.

Amanda: Yeah,

Tara: to really explore it.

Amanda: yeah, definitely. It's in the subconscious mind. So like, I didn't even think that I was feeling that way about myself. Like, [00:09:00] I consciously, I thought, like, I know I deserve rest, but it was like in the subconscious mind, hidden.

Tara: Yeah. It's not like you were sitting down and you're like, man, I feel really guilty right now for

Amanda: Yeah,

Tara: Yeah, I totally get that. Well, you know, for listeners who may not be familiar with Reiki, do you mind sharing just what it is and how it does help kind of release maybe some of these emotional burdens? heard too that it does regulate like your nervous system, which is so huge when it comes to burnout recovery. And then just thinking about like how it re energizes us as well.

Amanda: yeah, so Reiki is a Japanese technique for, um, relaxation and stress relief, and it promotes healing, and how it works is, so like, according to quantum physics, everything is made of energy, right? Including our physical bodies, and we all have this life force [00:10:00] energy within us. It's kind of like the essence that makes us alive.

And, um, so we have like the channels of the energy in our body, like the main ones kind of with your spine, and they flow all through your body, and we are our healthiest and feeling our best when this energy is flowing freely. We can get disruptions and blockages in this energy, and they can be caused by a number of things, um, like stuck emotions and negative thoughts, limiting beliefs, because those emotions and thoughts, they're all made of energy, as is everything.

So we kind of get our energies like stagnant and not moving well. So Reiki comes in and helps to remove those blockages so that your energy is flowing freely again. It's kind of like a energy reset

Tara: Yeah.

Amanda: and yeah, it is really good for [00:11:00] regulating the nervous system. Cause the, when you're in the stress response, you're in like the sympathetic nervous system, like fight or flight.

And when you start to receive Reiki, your body just kind of naturally relaxes without you having to put much effort into that, because I know a lot of people who are chronically stressed, they can become so stuck in that fight or flight. It's like really hard for them to relax. So you kind of just automatically start relaxing during the session and And that's like the number one feeling most people have is super calm, relaxed.

A lot of people actually fall asleep during a session. Um, and so yeah, it's very helpful for regulating the nervous system. And since it is bringing in that life force energy, it helps replenish that. So when we are like exhausted and drained. our energy levels are [00:12:00] low, right? Even just our life force energy within us is low.

Um, if you think of like an aura, you want to have like a nice bright auric field. And then when you're being in that burnout state, it's kind of shrinks, the energy is low. And so the Reiki just really brings more of that energy in. So that you feel more energized, and I like to view Reiki as really a really good self care practice.

Tara: Absolutely.

Amanda: it is like, it has that relaxation and that time for yourself to really kind of go inward and reflect and work on managing your emotions. Maybe some things that you were kind of suppressing or ignoring and come back to yourself, feel refreshed afterwards.[00:13:00] 

Tara: Yeah, that sounds really cool. One of a, an episode earlier we were talking with another burnout coach and she had a question Really talks about how like self care and like your vacations and like taking PTO, they're not going to cure your burnout, but we were talking about how they, they set the foundation for you to be able to cure your burnout.

And we were also talking about how self care isn't just like bubble baths and getting your nails done, but really deep practices, like, like what you're talking about with Reiki. I'm curious, like what, and I don't know if you can even share this, but like, what does a, a Reiki session look like for someone?

Amanda: So there's two ways to do it. You can do either in person or by distance. Thanks. In person, the person's like laying on like a massage table and you just lay there on your back with your eyes closed and the practitioner kind of hovers their hands over the body, [00:14:00] different areas and the Reiki, like, so the Reiki comes through the hands.

Some people place the hands on the body. I usually like to hover above and then for a distance session. So the Reiki is able to be sent by distance to anyone. anywhere without losing effectiveness, which is really amazing. So you could just be laying like in your bed at home and receiving the Reiki in the same way.

Tara: That's really cool. I like that there's no boundary to your

Amanda: Yeah.

Tara: to that force

Amanda: Yeah,

Tara: really cool. So we've talked a little bit about this, but I'm hoping you can give us a little bit more in depth perspective, especially with your expertise. But, know, burnout, the way it's even just described by the World Health Organization is an occupational phenomenon.

So most people view this kind of as a Mental or physical approach, like through that kind of [00:15:00] lens. But as you've talked about, like you approach it more from the energetic perspective, which is a unique way to think about it, that we don't see in a lot of the research and a lot of the literature about burnout. can you dig into this a little bit more about like what that means to you and why you think it's so important approach it from this perspective, as far as like recovery and awareness?

Amanda: yeah, so, from an energetic perspective, really anything can be considered that, like, the physical is included in that, and like, the emotional, because the Reiki does help to work on the emotions, like, if you have a lot of emotional burden, that will help. Also contribute to your burnout. Um, and yeah, just like with the replenishing your energy levels.

So I like how your podcast uses the word balance because I [00:16:00] really view it as burnout is when you're out of balance, like you're spending too much energy and you're not giving back to yourself enough. Um, and I think pretty much anyone who's in burnout is out of tune with their body and their actual needs.

Or maybe they know their needs, they're just ignoring them and pushing through because they're trying to accomplish whatever it is they're doing. So, really like coming back to your body and forming a healthy relationship with yourself where you don't just neglect your needs. Your body's, um, messages and what it's asking of you.

You really care for yourself and give yourself what you need. So if you need that time to rest, to do some self care, you are, um, really filling up your own cup again, because burnout is like an empty cup or if you're just drained. So you need to have the balance of doing [00:17:00] and resting some kind of activity to replenish yourself.

Tara: Yeah, I had a whole episode in season one that talks about and like redefining balance and the way I, I always describe it. Cause I, there's conversations right about, it balance? Is it harmony? Is it integration? And I mean, I think they all. Can mean the same thing. It's really how you define it for yourself, but the way I am vision balance is like, if you have a gymnast on a balance beam, they're not always like standing up there perfectly. and not wobbling, right? Most of the time you see them kind of wobble, they, they do a trick and they may land perfectly, but they also may land not perfectly, they may fall off and have to get back on. And that's how I kind of see this like misalignment, like you said, with [00:18:00] your body, like there are moments where your body's going to be. Perfectly still and feel good. And, know, you're giving your body what it needs, but then there are moments where

Amanda: Okay.

Tara: is knowing that and having that self awareness, which I think is so important. And I think that that's where that energy lens can really come in because. There's such a power in being so in tune with your body to know when your energy Is not where it needs to be or not where it's at its prime.

Amanda: Yeah, I like that, um, view of it. It's like, um, you don't want to go too far over the edge, but you also don't have to be like perfect. Um, but what was I going to say? Um, yeah,

Tara: Maybe it'll come back. Um, [00:19:00] but that's really cool. And like, you know, talking about like revisiting yourself, coming back to yourself. I think if we spend more time focusing on our energy, I think we have a lot of opportunity to really be our best selves day in and day out, whatever that looks like, because your energy ebbs and flows. And. You need to focus on certain aspects of your energy at different times and different seasons in your life. So I really kind of like that. It's almost like if you imagine like. A wave, you know, like waves come there, they're constantly coming on the ocean, but some waves are bigger and some waves are smaller.

And sometimes the ocean's a little more still than others. And it's all about like figuring out how to float with that.

Amanda: it's like being adaptable and like adjusting to the situation as it is now because your energy doesn't, you know, You can't expect your [00:20:00] energy to be the same every day. So like I say, instead of managing your time, manage your energy. Because if you just think every day, I'll be able to accomplish the same amount of things, but some days your energy will be at like a 90 other days, it will be at like a 30.

So you kind of have to adjust based off of that and also adjust. The self care and giving that time back to yourself based on where your energy level. Yeah. Yeah.

Tara: not time management. It's energy management. I work with folks a lot of times to do energy audits. I think it's a great practice to do an energy audit every morning just to kind of, like you said, know exactly where you're at in that moment for the day.

And obviously, even throughout the day, your energy can change, but at least it gives you an idea of how to Prepare for the day coming up, depending on where you're sitting. Like yesterday I was worth nothing. So like [00:21:00] I knew I needed to rest a little bit more than I normally would during the day, but that's okay too. Because if you're planning with your energy, then you're doing what you need to be doing really.

Amanda: That's a really good tool to do that every day. And you could also do it at the end of the day too, and look back, like, did I spend my energy wisely or do I feel like completely depleted at the end of the day?

Tara: Yeah. I love that idea too. And to, to even think about like what worked in replenishing my energy and not so that you can have like that toolkit to know what self

Amanda: Yeah.

Tara: you need in certain moments, that's really good.

Amanda: Yeah. Can adjust going forward.

Tara: Right, right. So Amanda, you talked a little bit about boundaries your own kind of experience with burnout.

And you kind of think about these as one of the pillars that you emphasize when it comes to burnout recovery, which I completely agree. I think boundaries are huge when it comes to [00:22:00] building just that burnout resistance. I just, you know, from your perspective, why are they so critical? And, you know, back to that guilt. Kind of piece. A lot of folks feel guilty whenever they do set a boundary. Do you have any recommendations on how someone can start setting boundaries without feeling that guilt?

Amanda: Yeah. So, With boundaries, I kind of go back to thinking about that relationship to yourself and knowing yourself and your own needs, um, because if you don't know that, you're not going to know even what boundaries you need to set, so kind of assessing, um, like, where are you saying yes to things? That are just draining you that you don't really need to say yes to um, I think a lot of the time it ties back to people pleasing Where you don't want to like disappoint others you want everyone around you to Be you know comfortable and happy so you have [00:23:00] a hard time saying no.

Um, so with that, um I always kind of like Like to tune into my intuition and my body before if I have like an opportunity or something where I'm trying to decide if I want to say yes to this or no, and I will like ask myself, like, how would I feel if I did this? And, um, when you usually when it's a yes, you feel like light and like expensive excited about something.

But if it's something that's not really for you and not in your best interest, it'll feel more like contracted and heavy and kind of like dreading that. So I like to use that as a tool to kind of figure out what is the best thing for me to do because ideally, We pretty much would want to just be doing things that really excite [00:24:00] us and light us up because those things that make us feel heavy, um, and contracted, they're going to be the things that are going to be draining your energy more.

Um, so I like to kind of set boundaries around that, and it doesn't even have to be like a boundary that is all the time. It can be just something you decide in the moment, like having the boundary that you're able to say no, if you don't feel like doing something, if you don't think it's for your best interest.

Um, and yeah, and like how I said for myself, I was able to tune in and recognize that like working full time wasn't in my best interest. Like it might work perfectly fine for some people, but for me it didn't. So really kind of knowing your own unique needs, what works for you, and what doesn't, instead of like looking and comparing yourself to others.

Like this person can work full time, so I should be able to do [00:25:00] that. And then when you're not able to being hard and beating yourself up over that, um, so yeah, that really is kind of mostly how I view boundaries.

Tara: Silence.

Amanda: And also, um, yeah, the feeling guilty about it, um, I think ties back to that people pleasing a lot too, but recognizing that, like, in the airport safety videos, they tell you, you need to put your own oxygen mask on first, right?

So that you're able to help others because if you're burnt out and just completely depleted, you're not going to be showing up for, um, Your loved ones in the best way possible, when you care for yourself, you're better able to care for them.

Tara: Yeah, absolutely. I use that analogy all the time. And actually, um, my first ever guest interview with, um, a wonderful human named Dr. Lenicia. She, actually, she did like a, moment to me. She was like, [00:26:00] if you're not even well enough to put on your oxygen mask, then you're definitely not going to be any good to anybody. And that just really emphasized to me, like the importance of. That foundational piece of taking care of yourself taking care of anybody else and it's not selfish, it's actually probably a biggest, like the biggest manifestation of care for others that you can show because

Amanda: Yeah.

Tara: likely doing it to be able to be there for other people.

Amanda: Yeah. And if you look at it from the nursing perspective, like you shouldn't be working as a nurse when you're like feeling just horrible and like exhausted and you can't concentrate because that's when you're going to make mistakes and could actually end up harming someone.

Tara: Yeah, for sure. Definitely. A very important awareness piece, especially in certain and industries like healthcare. Um, I really like what you said too [00:27:00] about just thinking about how it you feel. So I want to highlight that for the listeners if they want to like go back and listen to that piece of you're given a situation or given an opportunity to really tap into how is this going to make you feel and actually put some like tangible to it like Amanda, you mentioned, like, do you feel light?

Do you feel energetic? Do you feel excited? Or do you feel constricted and heavy and almost like, for me, like when I say, when I start to feel small or I'm having to scrunch, then that's probably

Amanda: Hello.

Tara: a good sign or resentful. Like if I'm, if I know I'm going to hate being there or doing that thing,

Amanda: Yeah,

Tara: that I should probably say no.

Amanda: yeah, totally.

Tara: good, good practice for folks. And it's very tangible and very simple to do. And it gives you that [00:28:00] opportunity to. Put space between the request and your response, because, you know, we're in such a like immediate response kind of world now, but if you're wanting to set real true boundaries, the 1st boundary you can set is to give yourself space. response. So that way you can tap into that strategy and really think about like, is this something that I want to do? Yeah.

Amanda: I like that because otherwise you're just responding with like your same patterns you've been doing your whole life just automatically like you don't even really think about you're just like I say yes to everything.

Tara: You got to interrupt the autopilot mode for sure.

Amanda: Yeah,

Tara: Well, I got one more question for you that I ask everybody on. So this podcast is all about balanced living with [00:29:00] badass results. And so I'm curious from your perspective, how do you define being a balanced badass in your own life?

Amanda: um, so really just Like I was already talking about, um, tapping into how I'm feeling, um, and that, I mean, will change every moment. So, assessing, like, what it is that I need to adjust to feel that balance and really looking at it from a holistic perspective. So, like, the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual, because you want to be nice and centered in all of those areas.

And assessing, you know, if you're leaning too far to one side. And then, um, managing how you can come back into balance. And,

Tara: Mom. It

Amanda: and everything so that you're not just

Tara: generating

Amanda: You have an [00:30:00] equal balance between the doing and being,

Tara: sharing. for listening.

Amanda: feeling, like, emotionally and mentally.

Like, if you're feeling good or if you're having, you know, you're just not enjoying yourself at all. And, um, I feel like for me where the baddest piece really comes in is

Tara: of

Amanda: do what's best for you, even if that looks different from the norm. Because I think a lot of us can get really caught up in what seems normal in our society and think that, like, that's the path we need to go on.

But that doesn't work for everyone. Like, we're all so unique, so everyone is going to have a different way that works for them. And just really listening to that and being unapologetic and [00:31:00] doing what's best for you.

Tara: That's a really great definition. I always tell folks. we've, we've really got to stop shooting ourselves all the time. Like I should

Amanda: Yeah.

Tara: this and I should be reacting this way. Cause that's probably the most damaging narrative that we can tell ourselves on a daily basis. And it happens so easily. Um, so I really like that definition of being a badass, like just on unapologetically knowing what's what you need and staking your claim in that, you know, it's

Amanda: having that boundary that you're gonna do what's best for you?

Tara: Well, awesome. Well, I, you know, I just to the listeners, I hope that this episode really gave you a fresh perspective on burnout. I know it sure did for me. And really just how powerful focusing on your energy, your boundaries, and specifically that rest can be in your recovery journey. [00:32:00] Amanda, thank you so much for sharing your story and your expertise with us. And, you know, before we go, I do want to give you an opportunity to let our listeners know the best way that they can connect with you, but also learn more about heart and harmony healing

Amanda: Yeah, so the best way is through my Instagram heart period, in period Harmony. Or I do have a website, heart Harmony ca and um, yeah, that would be the best way to get in touch with me.

Tara: awesome Well, I'll make sure to include all of Amanda's links in the show notes So that everyone can explore more about how Reiki and energy awareness can transform your relationship with burnout But I think also with yourself, which is More important. If this episode resonated with you, please do me a favor, share it with someone who could use a little extra balance and healing in their life. And don't forget to subscribe so you don't miss future episodes packed with tips and strategies just like this to [00:33:00] help you live balanced and badass. Take care of your energy, friend, and I'll see you back here next time.