I’m completely burnt out drawing.
But my family insists that I continue because of the money it was bringing in.
“Everyone has to work, thats just life, you were given a gift, its selfish not to use it! We didn’t get lucky and get a gift like you have so we have to work 80 hours in retail!”
But I used to enjoy drawing and animating. Now it brings me no joy at all. And it was the only hobby I had. Really the only thing I enjoyed aside from hiking and outdoors which I dont have any more because I live in the city.
The more I force myself to do it for money the more it stresses me out. It feels like an obligation. Its making my depression and burnout so much worse.
No matter how much I tell them this they just respond like the quote above…
I guess like… does anyone have experience getting through this kind of burnout? Its been almost a year and I havnt been able to finish almost anything.
I’m surviving off ad revinue from a few old videos and that drops every month. Running out of time.
Forcing it hasnt worked very well.
First and foremost it can be a wise decision to address your concerns to a professional, especially if those close to you lack certain stability to provide advice or insight on your condition. Contact your local doctor perhaps, ask for pointers, and someone you could reach out to specifically believed capable of addressing your concerns, as having somebody who can pay more thorough attention to what may be on your mind could end up rather reassuring in the long run, rather than to run around trying a variety of things that may be addressing only the surface of a more underlying issue.
My advice below is more so theoretical approaches, and I can very well see many of these having been shared with you before, but I nonetheless shall attempt:
I will say that when it comes to burn-out it is often good to take a consistent step back from your usual life, and have a change in perspective and lifestyle for a little even. Burnout may cause you to abandon your tasks, but if not addressed properly, doing nothing may not really equal a break.
If you are looking for small changes, it can often be good to change your medium of self-expression. Art can be a beautiful way of expressing yourself, but if you feel as if you cannot do much outside of your usual, it may feel staggering and exhausting.
Changing up the type of work you do for a while could be really healthy. Been animating for most of your life? Try and do Speedpaints instead. Been only working on your PC? Perhaps try some other ways of approaching art.
Your work may fulfill physical needs such as food and financial security etc., but you as a person need variety, something that is entertaining… I have often felt like the verge of a burn-out came because doing what you do, the way you do it, although it has always worked before, has grown to become exhausting… it may not stay that way, but presently it appears so.
Having family members that are unaware or ignorant of your condition may lead to you feeling guilty, which I doubt will really help you.
Similar to insomnia, it will not be easier to sleep just because you remind yourself that you will have to fall asleep soon or otherwise tomorrow will be even worse…
Sometimes the best we can do is accept our condition for the time being and instead try something else. Accept that you are presently exhausted, grant yourself a break, and grant yourself the kindness to admit that what you are currently doing is not what makes you happy.
If it is fulfilling expectations that scare you, perhaps try and work through that, allow yourself to try new things, and different mediums… make changes to your life, the way you treat yourself, and the way you think of your condition. Do not needlessly punish yourself for being stuck, but rather allow yourself, without guilt, to take a break and do something else.
I have found that shifting the programs I use or the ways I render can be rather creatively refreshing, especially if you stop having a set expectation toward the thing that you produce at the end of the day.
It can weigh a lot on a person to feel as if the thing you used to love is now something that you have no choice but to provide, and it is good to admit to yourself that you feel you can and cannot do things the same way you did before.
Sometimes we need to grant ourselves the freedom of saying “I might never want to do it this way again - I want to do something else and I want to find out if it will make me happier” and perhaps you should devote your break to that exploration of self, for it may leave you feeling happier.
Otherwise, consider visiting a friend. Do you miss being on hikes? Outdoors perhaps? See if you can leave for a bit, perhaps for a couple of weeks, just to breathe some different air and not feel as if the same faces greet you every day, see if it is possible to break the cycle and ask yourself what you feel is missing to make your experience fulfilling. Sometimes what we miss is not even an addition to our concerns, but rather a lack thereof. Sometimes having a lot of projects and plans in your life can feel overwhelming - sometimes striving for a simple goal can relieve your mind.
These are just some first thoughts that come to mind - I have written these whilst rather tired… but the topic of burn-out and how to go about it has been on my mind more frequently and I would not mind opening the discussion for further contemplation.