We’ve all been there: During stressful times, mental burnout causes the occasional sleepless night. However, what if the mental weight of your job, your family, and your life causes sleepless nights every night? It’s true — the stress from being a C-suite, high-level individual, or executive can cause issues with your mental health which, in turn, can greatly impact your sleep and your life. Keep reading for more about executive mental health, exhaustion, and what you can start doing to overcome it.
Mental Illness and Exhaustion: The Connection
Prolonged stress — whether it is from work, relationships, events, the pandemic, or all of them combined — can cause our emotional “cup” to fill. Once the cup starts overflowing, it becomes too much for the mind to be able to handle on its own. Stress from poor executive mental health starts impacting other areas of one’s body and life, such as sleep, eating habits, moods, and more.
This all is especially true when you’re suffering from mental health issues on top of it all. When your brain is constantly searching for the right way to feel, to combat intrusive thoughts or feelings, or to combat urges such as drinking or poor eating, it can all make you feel exhausted.
Symptoms of Mental Exhaustion
Physical symptoms:
- Becoming sick frequently due to lowered immunity
- Muscle pain
- Gastrointestinal issues
- Insomnia
- Frequent headaches
- High blood pressure
- Increased substance use
Emotional symptoms:
- Depression
- Anxiety
- Lethargy
- Irritability and agitation
- Generally pessimistic
- Isolation from loved ones
How Poor Sleep Quality Affects Your Life
Suffering from poor sleep quality due to mental exhaustion doesn’t just make you more tired during the day, and isn’t fixed with a few extra cups of coffee. It can greatly affect many areas of your life. These include:
- Memory issues
- Mood changes
- Weakened immunity
- Higher risk for diabetes
- Low sex drive
- Poor balance and coordination
- Risk of heart disease
- Weight gain
- Trouble with thinking through complex situations
- Trouble concentrating
Being a C-Level or executive, it is important to make sure your body is as healthy as possible to make those important decisions. This means keeping stress at a minimum so that your executive mental health is taken care of and you’re able to comfortably sleep.
What You Can Do
If you are feeling as if your executive mental health is suffering and the burnout is impacting other areas of your life, here are a few things you can start practicing every day to help get your stress levels lowered:
- Take time. As an executive, this can be difficult to do with a busy schedule. However, it is one of the most important things you can do for yourself. Even if it means scheduling out a block of time during the day, make sure you find 30-60 minutes where you can do something you enjoy, such as meditation.
- Exercise. This can sound difficult to do when you’re feeling exhausted, but exercise helps boost energy levels and helps aid in your sleep. It is also a great way for the body to get rid of extra stress and anxiety, rather than allowing it to manifest as poor sleep. Aim for 30 minutes a day in the morning — exercising at night can cause you to stay up late.
- Eat healthily. When you’re tired, it can seem difficult to want to cook or eat healthily. It’s easier to just grab whatever is convenient, and that is often an unhealthy choice. Try making better food choices, as food with a lot of sugar and fat can slow you down.
Get out in nature. Being around nature can help improve mood and cognitive function, and is a great way to relax. - Stop using electronics an hour before bed. As an executive or C-Level individual, this might sound impossible. However, according to the Sleep Foundation, electronic back-lit devices like cell phones, tablets, readers, and computers emit short-wavelength enriched light, also known as blue light. Fluorescent and LED lights4 also emit blue light, which has been shown to reduce or delay the natural production of melatonin in the evening and decrease feelings of sleepiness.
- Reach out for help. If your executive mental health is impacting your life too great and you need to get back on track, reach out for help. This can mean trying a new medication, taking time away from work, or having professionals help you get to the core of your stress.
About The Pointe Malibu Treatment Center
If you’ve found your mental health issues are beyond your control, please accept help. We understand your reluctance. However, in our vast experience as a treatment center, help is typically needed. We staff clinical and medical professionals who understand the origin of your suffering. We also staff world-class alcohol abuse and drug addiction experts. We administer real-world, effective treatment solutions.
We offer discrete and luxurious accommodations. Where helpful, private quarters are available. Our exquisite residential properties are located in Malibu’s most prestigious beach-front community. Our on-staff chefs prepare gourmet cuisine daily. The Pacific Ocean is a beautiful place to find peace and begin your recovery.
Yes, you’re safe here. Our commitment to privacy is unwavering. In the spirit of compassion, professional ethics, and in accordance with HIPAA privacy protections, your recovery is the business of only those you personally choose to inform.
Why is it time for you to accept help? Because you’re here. You’re already looking for answers and a solution. Where accepting help once seemed a humiliating idea, the promise of relief that professional treatment may offer carries more importance. Yes, we are offering you a path to relief.
It’s okay to accept help. Allow us to help you.
