Beyond Burnout with Leslie Glen

Episode 5: The Critical Voice
When did it become normal to speak to ourselves in ways we'd never speak to someone we love?
In this episode of Beyond Burnout, we're exploring one of the biggest obstacles to taking care of ourselves: the critical voice.
It's that voice that tells us we're not doing enough, that we're lazy, selfish, or not good enough. The voice that makes us feel guilty for taking time for ourselves, or tells us that whatever we're doing, we should be doing more.
These criticisms can become so familiar that we don't even notice them anymore. We just accept them as the truth.
But where do these voices come from? And how can we start to question what they're telling us?
We'll look at how to recognise and separate ourselves from the critical voice, explore the beliefs behind its judgements, and introduce some CBT-based techniques for examining the evidence and challenging those criticisms.
This week's practice is to start noticing your own critical voice. What does it say? Does it remind you of anyone? Can you give it a character or persona so that you can begin to recognise it when it appears?
This work takes time, and if your critical voice is particularly harsh or deeply ingrained, it can be helpful to explore it with a therapist.
Remember, just because a thought appears in your mind doesn't mean you have to believe it.
Website: https://innershiftpsychology.com
Instagram: @leslie.innershift
Music composed and performed by Ben Wright.

Episode 4: Slow Down and Practice
We've been moving pretty quickly through the exercises in the first three episodes of Beyond Burnout, so this week we're going to slow things down and actually practise some of them together.
We'll start with a short guided meditation through the Four Check-ins, taking some time to connect with our bodies, minds, emotions, and needs.
Then I'll share some of my own experiences with the exercises we've been working on. We'll look at how to distinguish between the things we NEED TO do and the things we WANT TO do, and I'll go through my own list of activities that regulate and replenish me.
I'll also introduce you to one of my favourite practices: the Nothing Day. A day with absolutely nothing planned, where every decision is made in the moment, based on what I actually feel like doing.
If you've been struggling to keep up with the exercises, this episode is a chance to catch up. There's no rush, and you don't need to follow the podcast at the same pace I'm releasing it.
Music composed and performed by Ben Wright.
innershiftpsychology.com
instagram: @leslie.innershift

Episode 3: What's Getting in the Way?
When did it become normal to put ourselves at the bottom of our own priority lists?
In this third episode of Beyond Burnout, we're exploring what gets in the way of taking care of ourselves, even when we know what we need.
We'll check in on the practices from our first two episodes: the Four Check-ins and identifying the activities that regulate and replenish us versus those that drain and dysregulate us. Have you been able to put what you've learned into practice? And if not, what's stopping you?
We'll explore two common obstacles: overwhelm and the 'shoulds'.
I'll introduce a simple mind-mapping exercise to help get everything that's occupying your mind out onto paper, making overwhelming tasks feel more manageable.
We'll also begin looking at the critical voice and the expectations we place on ourselves. How often do you tell yourself what you should or shouldn't be doing? And whose voice is behind those expectations?
This episode's practices:
Continue the Four Check-ins.
Keep incorporating regulating and replenishing activities into your everyday life.
Create a mind map of everything occupying your mind.
Sort your tasks into NEED TO and WANT TO, and question the 'shoulds' that don't fit into either category.
Start noticing your critical voice and the expectations it places on you.
Remember, there's no rush to get through these exercises. Take as much time as you need to integrate them into your life before moving on to the next episode.
Music composed and performed by Ben Wright.

Episode 2: Finding Our Balance
When did it become normal to put everything else before what we need?
In this second episode of Beyond Burnout, we're checking in on our first practice: the Four Check-ins. What did you discover when you took the time to listen to your body, mind, and emotions? Were you able to recognise what you needed, and did you manage to act on those needs?
We'll also explore what might be stopping you from making time for yourself, and why putting what we learn into practice is so important.
I'll introduce my Hourglass Model, which helps us understand how external pressures and expectations can pull us away from our own needs, and how we can begin to restore balance by listening to ourselves.
Finally, we'll look at the activities that replenish and regulate us, versus those that drain or dysregulate us, and how becoming aware of these patterns can help us make more conscious choices in everyday life.
This episode's practices:
Continue the Four Check-ins.
Make two lists: activities that replenish or regulate you, and activities that drain or dysregulate you.
Remember, understanding is only the beginning. Change comes through practice.
Music composed and performed by Ben Wright.

When did it become normal to be exhausted by our own lives? In this first episode, Leslie introduces Beyond Burnout and shares why she wants to explore what it means to live well in a world that never slows down. She talks about the pressures that can pull us away from ourselves, and four check-ins—body, mind, emotions and needs—that can help us listen inward. You’re invited to try them in your own way, and embark on a step-by-step journey to combat and prevent burnout.
 
Music for this podcast by Benjaminas Wright (all rights reserved).