Burnout?

[SomeoneSomewher]

Hi everyone,I'm currently in Year 12 doing a really heavy STEM workload (Methods, Physics, Chemistry, Biology) and aiming for medicine. For the last few months, I've been stressing a bit, and my body often hits a wall. Right now, I am dealing with fatigue, brain fog, and this tension in my head and jaw. Sometimes gravity feels so heavy that my body physically really doesn't want to move and just screams at me to do nothing. I'm fluctuating between feeling completely overwhelmed/anxious/guilty and just feeling totally numb, apathetic, and unable to hold my attention. I've been making stupid, easily avoidable mistakes on my schoolwork, and life in general, and my gut has been constantly upset too. I had a weekend of "rest" but I woke up on Monday feeling exactly the same, if not worse, because the line between resting and avoiding the massive pile of work is completely blurred. I’ve wanted to do medicine my whole life because I love human biology and want to help people through vulnerable moments. But feeling like this makes me terrified that I don't have what it takes to be a medical professional. If I can't handle a heavy Year 12 week without it feeling like my body shutting down, how am I supposed to handle a hospital? I feel like my brain is screaming at me to just give up on schoolwork, but I’m terrified of failing or getting stuck in a pathway that won't satisfy me. Has anyone else experienced this kind of physical "freeze" response from academic stress? How do you break the cycle when resting just makes the guilt and the deadlines worse? I just feel so drained and trapped and afraid of the future.

[Sophie_M]

Hi there, What you’re describing, that heavy, almost “can’t move” feeling, the brain fog, the mistakes, the gut issues. That actually lines up really closely with a stress overload response. A lot of people call it a “freeze” state, where your system basically hits capacity and starts shutting things down to cope. It usually means you’ve been pushing hard for a long time without enough true recovery, and your body is forcing a reset.

One of the tricky parts (which you’ve already picked up on) is that “rest” can turn into guilt/avoidance, which keeps the stress loop going. Sometimes it helps to redefine rest as something intentional and contained. For example, short, planned breaks where you fully step away, rather than unstructured time where your mind keeps running.

With study, instead of trying to tackle everything, it can help to shrink things right down. Even something like:

• open the book
• read one page
• do one question

It sounds almost too simple, but when you’re in that frozen state, lowering the entry point can help your brain re-engage without triggering more overwhelm.

Also, the fact that you’re worried about whether you’re “cut out” for medicine says more about how much you care than your actual capacity. People who do well in those fields aren’t the ones who never struggle, they’re the ones who learn how to work with their limits over time.

If this keeps building, it could really help to loop in someone at school (like a counsellor or trusted teacher) just so you’re not carrying it all alone, especially with that workload. You’re not broken or falling behind, this is your system asking for a different pace, not an end point.

Kind regards,
Sophie M

[SomeoneSomewher]

Thank you for your time, advice, and kind words!

I do often try the shrink things down method but then struggle to focus properly and silence my brain when I do. For example, I will try to read a page and feel as if everything is being forgotten straight after I read it. Sometimes I'll reread the same thing multiple times and feel like I understand it in the immediate moment, or maybe even don't, but then it deletes from my brain. I do have moments where I feel more sharp and clear, and during those moments these things often come quite easily to me. Other times even the small steps feel stupidly difficult.

I think it has been building for a while, years probably, and I am currently talking to a member of my school's well-being team. She has been amazing and very supportive but I'm not sure I've given her the full picture or if/how I should.

I am quite interested in the short planned breaks, what could they look like? I feel that my planned breaks do end up going overtime which is definitely a problem, also getting my brain to just stop during them.

Once again thank you, it means a lot to me and I'm really grateful for the support.

[Psychdiaries2]

Hey there,

Thank you for sharing your experience and I just wanted to say that I relate as someone who finished year 12 2 years ago. With all the anxiety you're experiencing, I would suggest doing some meditation like on Smiling Mind to help you stay in the present moment and not get swept up in all the thoughts about the future. I think that year 12 is really demanding and you're doing your best in your subjects which is all you can do. Try to keep reminding yourself of that.

Maybe when you're reading/studying, you can write notes so you don't forget what you've read? Try to go over them as much as you can, at different times of the day like in your study period and just before bed if that helps you. I think you can also try setting a timer on your phone to have a short planned break. For example, you set a timer to do one hour of study, then a timer to have a 10-15 min break where you can stretch, do something you enjoy, etc. 

Keep talking to your wellbeing team at school, that's great to hear she has been very supportive! If you want to give her the full picture, maybe you can try to be honest about your entire experience right now since the more she knows, the more she'll be able to help you with. 

Try to focus on the here and now and know that you have time to think about the future later. What matters is looking after yourself and staying on top of your study today. 

Wishing you all the best of luck for the rest of year 12 and don't forget to ask your teachers for help too.You are more than welcome to keep chatting here on the forums. Hope this helps!

Kind regards,

PsychDiaries

[SomeoneSomewher]

Hello, thanks so much for your time and advice, I really appreciate it!

It's been a few months since then, and honestly, I feel like things have maybe declined a bit, which I'm embarrassed about.

More and more I feel like I don't care so much, even though I know that I ultimately do care. I just often feel somewhat detached from the outcome of school and kinda hopeless. Staying ontop of work has proved to be a challenge as I continue to feel progressively further behind and it often all feels a little pointless.

I've been constantly relying on extensions, I've been submitting highly rushed work, and I even managed to submit a final assignment while somehow convinced it was a draft. Luckily I went to the teacher about it and she let me have the night to fix it the best I could, but it was such an incredibly stupid and careless mistake that she said it's hard to believe. 

I honestly feel ridiculous and pathetic at this point, never has the idea of giving up on school sounded so appealing. A few months ago that thought would be horrifying and I would have thought hell no to it.

Just yesterday I was trying to sort out my room a bit, and I found notes on homeostasis from a few years ago that I made purely because I wanted to, out of curiosity and interest. Ironically, that's the exact topic I was supposed to have a test on this week but missed as I'm at home sick. It just makes me feel like that part of me has died a little, I genuinely loved learning, I chose to do it in my free time because I wanted to. Now everything just feels like too much and I feel like I'm not enough.

I just feel sick of myself honestly, and like I don't know what to do. The thought of doing school work often makes my brain scream NO! It's embarrassing.

I feel dramatic, and stuck, and like an undeserving fraud who's bound to be exposed, I already feel kinda exposed.

At the same time, I don't fully understand because so many of my thoughts are conflicting and often I struggle to believe myself.

I probably spend way too much time in my head, trying to analyse what's going on, or hoping to think my way to a solution. I reckon I need to stop, but I think it's almost addictive.

I don't like the way I talk to myself, or the stories I tell myself, and I want to change and be better. Often the idea of that though sounds too hard and like I don't have the mental capacity to move forward.

To sum it up, I reckon I'm just sick of myself, and I don't want to be this way but I feel stuck and a bit hopeless.