Burnout Isn't A Failure - It's A Signal

"Somewhere along the way, being high-functioning started to look like being inhuman - and the world rewards you for it."

I've been called a robot.
An alien.

Maybe it's because I write essays for fun.
Or maybe it's because of how much I work.
Or the way I speak.

This past quarter, someone told me that the way I communicate can feel like I'm speaking at people, not with them - almost as if I see them as subhuman. It wasn't said with malice. They clarified they knew I didn't mean it that way.

And I wasn't offended.

But it made me wonder if people ever stop to consider that I am human too.
That I get burned out.

🎧 No matter how much 42 Dugg or EST Gee I listen to, I still cry in my car.
And no - sadly - the windows are not tinted.

I am an emotional thugstress.

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There are nights when my laptop stays more awake than I do, balanced on my lap.
There are mornings when my body wakes up before my spirit does.

And despite being a lone wolf, I still crave company - real company.
Not conversations about business, work, or the never-ending list of projects I'm carrying.

Sometimes I crave the small questions:

How's your family?
What book are you reading?
What did you eat for lunch?
Did you even eat today?

And that's where this story really begins.

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When "High-Functioning" Becomes Disappearing 🖤

"Burnout doesn't always look like falling apart. Sometimes it looks like performing exceptionally well while quietly disappearing behind the scenes."

I still hit my quotas.
I still show up polished.
I'm still "the strong one."

And yet - burnout doesn't always announce itself with chaos.

Sometimes it hides inside control.
Inside discipline.
Inside surviving so well that no one realizes you're tired.

That's the part no one warns you about.

I think I've made people see me as a woman who is emotionless - someone who doesn't spend enough time with herself, her friends, or her family. And sometimes...that's true.

I am married to being the dog in life because I refuse to be dog food.
And when you commit to that belief, you move strategically - carefully enough not to step in life's dog shit.

But life will humble you.

Sometimes you have to step in it to understand why you move better next time.

My grandma says it's good luck to step in dog shit.
Maybe it is. 🎯

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Why Women Burn Out Differently 🌸

"Women don't burn out quietly or by accident - we're trained to."

We carry emotional labor that never makes it onto a job description.
We're expected to be competent and warm, ambitious but grateful, assertive but never intimidating.

Femininity is praised until it inconveniences productivity - then it's punished.
Ambition is celebrated only when it doesn't require rest.

We're taught to perform strength while falling apart.

To show up polished.
Hit quotas.
Be "the strong one."

That's not resilience.
That's survival with a smile.

And survival, long-term, is exhausting.

Oh - and don't forget: on top of all of this, your eyebrows still have to be on fleek.

Because...da fuq? 😭

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Rest Is Not a Reward 🤍

"Rest isn't a reward - it's maintenance."

I know I'm tired when:
I want to reschedule on my clients
I power my phone off and lay back down "just a little longer"
I stop wanting to do my hair
My nail lady quietly becomes a budget cut
#sorry 💅

That's not collapse.
That's functioning exhaustion.

Still responding.
Still producing.
Still being "on."

And that's the lie burnout tells us:

If you're still showing up, you must be fine.

But rest isn't quitting.
Rest isn't weakness.
Rest is longevity.
Rest is protection.

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What Rest Looks Like for Me 🕊️

Rest looks like prayer - even when I don't have the words.
Sometimes it's just sitting still long enough to feel God near me again.

Rest looks like being with myself without trying to optimize the moment.
No productivity.
No self-improvement agenda.

Just me---and Baddies USA.
Shoutout to the Zeuz Network because nothing heals the soul like ghetto reality TV. 📺

Rest looks like:
Laughing with my parents while they roast me for being a nerd
Hearing my sister complain about her stomach pains (which I blame entirely
on the hot sauce bottles by her bed)
#wedontjudge 🌶️
Letting myself exist without translating it into value

"Rest is how I stay human in a world that profits from me pretending not to be."

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Burnout Isn't the End - It's the Warning Light 🚨

Burnout isn't me failing.
It's my body tapping me on the shoulder saying, "Hey...I'm still here."

Like 42 Dugg said:

"I done been tired before I ever got rich."

Being tired doesn't mean you're weak.
It doesn't mean you're ungrateful.
It means you've been carrying weight.

And the world will call you lazy the moment you stop carrying it for them.

So if you're still hitting your goals but crying in your car...
Still showing up but fantasizing about disappearing for a weekend...
Still "doing well" but feeling hollow -

✨ This is your permission slip. ✨

Not to quit.
Not to disappear.
But to pause long enough to remember you're human.

Burnout isn't the end of the story.
It's the warning light.

And I'm listening now.

Still ambitious.
Still disciplined.
Still hungry.

Just resting my soul between the reps.

Because I refuse to build a life I'm too tired to live.

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All my love,
❤️ Munna Abdelhady