What did you do to recover from burnout?

This is a very common issue in the IT industry.

The most important thing you can do is to not let it get to a point where its impacting your health.

What that typically means is taking regular vacations, if its already at a point that's difficult to deal with, you'll need to take a long break to recover.

A break where you only think about what you want to spend your time on, and time to do things that you wanted to do. There really isn't much you can actively do to recover after being burnt out.

Time where you have no main pressures is the only solution at that point and from my experience it usually takes at least a month to feel normal again. Some people bounce back better, but some people need to take at least a few months which can be difficult if you don't have much saved.

There are coping things you can do if that's not possible, meditating, specifically learning to still your mind can be helpful for some people. Disconnecting, not carrying a cell phone at times can be particularly freeing.

What's important is you take the time you feel you need because its different for everyone. Some people bounce back more quickly or more slowly. It all depends on your circumstances. You don't need to give work 110% of your time or effort especially at the wages most people get (considering inflation wiped out 20% of people's earnings this past year and the corresponding increase in taxes for some people added another 10% to that.

Quit job, loaded up bicycle, road up the East Coast of USA, 6 weeks, not a fast rider, but I enjoyed it a LOT.

Casually worked my way back, taking buses to get to places of interest.

Got back. Total time gone 4 months, ready to get back into it.

I burned out just before the birth of my daughter - it was the extra I was doing to make sure I'd handed off to my replacement during paternity leave that sent me over the edge. The week my daughter was born, I was not at work but I couldn't help my mind from racing with fleeting thoughts and needlessly worrying about unfinished business .. I suppose it was "The inertia" and I knew I had to fix myself.

I requested to resign but was given leave to recover by my manager (which was very helpful). I ended up taking 6 months off doing all and nothing - took care of my baby daughter, helped my wife out, fixed small things around the house, picked up cycling, read a lot, went on small excursions and holidays, soaked up the sun, etc.

This helped "forget" and rejuvenate and I was now confident in myself that I wasn't a neurotic hamster-in-a-wheel anymore and stable enough to negotiate a better return to work - I ended up requesting a change of team/project which was a clean start and little in terms of attachment or responsibility that'd draw me back to being overwhelmed.

Things didn't work out in the new team - and that's just fine. I was free enough then to start job hunting and find work in a new place without being forced to jump ship.

Quit current position and take something less stressful (even some startups fit this mold). If you have enough money, take some time off an be with family (or with yourself if you prefer). Just separate yourself from current work responsibilities for as long as it takes before you feel good again.

Retired and did nothing for a few years until I felt like working on something again. I do not want to return to programming, I spent 30+ years doing that. Instead I'm working on other kinds of projects; electronics, art, video.