Practical Strategies for Recovery

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Hi, I'm Catherine Ryan, and you're listening to Dr. Nicholas Second Opinion, the bonus podcast, where we unpack the secrets of biological aging with a healthy dose of hard science. Coming up, we'll bust some more myths on aging. Plus, we'll answer your questions and wrap it all up in a bow with Dr. Nick's Quick Fix, giving you something simple and powerful you can try today. This week, burnout is on the agenda. How do you know when you're b ody is past breaking point? Dr. Nicola's second opinion. So welcome back and thank you for joining me again. Burnout is something that I am getting asked about more and more every single day . It's a word that I'm hearing come up in conversations a lot more. You know, people are saying I'm burnt out, I'm exhausted, I've got nothing left. But what actually is burnout? Is it just being tired? Is it stress? Or is it something deeper? And more importantly, is it something that could also be affecting how well we age? So in this episode, I'm gonna explain what burnout really means, what it means for your body And what are some telltale signs that you might be heading towards burnout? And as usual we'll have some listener questions at the end that I'll answer . So let's move on to the science bit. So let's start by saying an important point is that burnout is not just tiredness. It's not just having a busy week. And although ultimately it is caused by stress, it So what are they? What should you be looking out for? Well, when I've spoken about stress before in previous episodes, we know that in short bursts, sometimes a little bit of stress can even be useful for us because it sharpens our focus, it gives you energy, and this happens because when we experience stress, the body responds by activating the body's stress management system, which is called the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis. Science word of the week! That is the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis or HBA axis for short because nobody needs to know that mouthful . And what this does is it leads to the release of hormones that are control ling the stress. So these hormones are cortisol and adrenaline. Now, in short bursts, these are both useful. But when this stress becomes chronic, these actually stay elevated for too long. And it's this unrelenting stress that throws this HPA access into a state of permanent dysregulation. So this means the body is constantly flooded with these stress hormones, and that is very tiring to the body. And this means that people who are experiencing burnout tend to feel physically, mentally, and emotionally depleted. And that is a telltale sign that this stress has turned to burnout. And people usually start to have a feeling of emptiness or feeling a bit hollow. They feel a bit detached and they maybe start to describe feeling like they're beyond the point of caring and they just begin to lose all motivation. These are all telltale signs that it is not just stress and it is turning to burnout. And as you probably guessed, this is not good for aging because this dysregulation of our body stress management system causes huge wear and tear on the body beneath the surface, and studies have shown that it can increase our biological age by around four to ten years. So personally, I think that modern life has a lot to blame for this because if you think about it, we are just digitally connected 24-7 . There is little separation between our work and our rest. And many of us are juggling careers , children, caregiving, and all of this is keeping us in this low-grade stress state almost constantly. Now, this is very different to what our bodies are designed for, because unlike our ancestors who would have faced acute stress, such as a a predator, something chasing us, or a food shortage or something like that, but then they would have returned to recovery and they would have fully switched off , but we rarely now fully switched off. And it's this lack of recovery that really drives burnout. And I just want to say that burnout is definitely not a weakness, and neither is it a badge of honor. It's our biology and it's basically our body saying you need to stop because you have been in survival mode for too long. Doctor Nicola's second opinion. So Sandra from the Bake Off was talking about burnout in his episode in series two because of the hectic schedule that he has. I would say my happiness has been at a five lately. The bad thing about getting such a high from being on something like the Great Bitch Bake Off and everyone loving you and all that stuff. It's just that the high does come down at some point. I got thrown in, so thrown in to work. Like I was everywhere. I mean you still see me in quite a lot of places and I don't say no to a lot of things as well so end up burning myself out and you know you wait for the next opportunity to come and that don't come and it's just kind of like, ooh, it starts to feel a bit low. And then obviously I always I'm always baking and it's just so annoying because I've just like I've got all of these cookies. Yeah. You know, it's like what am I supposed to do with these cookies other than just stuff myself? Do you get high on your own supply. Yes. Okay. It's not good. I don't think I'd have been the best Brazilian drug lord. So I think definitely what we heard with Sandro is some of those feelings that are also associated with burnout where you do feel a bit hopeless and a bit lost and this is definitely a sign that sometimes you do in a bit much and something that doesn't come as often just with stress. So it's always a good one to look out for. Dr. Nicola's second opinion. Okay, great. So now let's get into some questions, and the first one comes from Catherine. Hi, Dr. Nick. I've hit burnout twice in the last five years, and I'm terrified of what that stress is doing to my body as I age. Could you explain what chronic burnout actually does on a cellular level and whether any of it is reversible? That's from Melissa in Brighton. Okay, so first of all, thank you for sharing that with us and I'm really sorry to hear that you have experienced burnout a couple of times, but the fact that you're aware of it is very powerful because when you are aware of it, there are definitely things that you can do to help yourself, and that's important because yes, the effects are definitely reversible. Now, the worst part about burnout is the extra inflammation that it causes in the body. So these inflammatory signals don't just affect the mood, they actually affect your blood vessels, your skin, your brain, and even your metabolism. Burnout, we know can also shorten your telomeres, which are little protective caps on your DNA that you might have heard me talking about previously. Now, these help to keep your cells youthful, and we generally see that when people experience burnout, these telomeres shorten, and that gives a higher biological age. But the good news is that studies show that when the stress is reduced through things like therapy, meditation, improved sleep, all of these things can slow down and even reverse the effect that burnout has on your cells. So no, you are absolutely not permanently damag This episode of What's My Age Again is sponsored by MedExpress, the UK online pharmacy. If you've been trying to manage your weight but feel like nothing's really working, MedExpress connects you with UK registered clinicians who assess your situation and create a treatment plan to support your weight management goals. With over 1.5 million customers, MedExpress is one of the country's leading online pharmacies, and they offer access to licensed, evidence-based treatment under medical supervision, and the whole process happens from your laptop or phone. There's no need for face-to-face appointments. They'll post your approved treatment to your door each month. 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Off for end 6th of May. 24 months. 26.99 from the 31st of March 2027. 30.99 for the 31st of March 2028. New customers only. 62% UK availability. Term supply. So let's move on to the next question now, which is from Janine, who's 52, and she says, I've spent decades juggling work, kids, and caring for my parents. I feel like I'm constantly running on fumes and I'm worried it's accelerating my aging. How can I start repairing the damage or have I left it a bit late? Okay, so you know what I'm gonna say here? It is never too late to start making changes. The body is remarkably responsive to change. So even in our 50s and bey ond, it can have a major impact. In fact, some of the biggest gains in biological age reversal studies actually happen when people start to shift their lifestyle mid-life. So, first of all, when we think about repair, this definitely starts with recovery. So that means sleep is definitely a non-negotiable because it's during deep sleep that inflammation falls and cellular repair pathways