Burnout Doesn’t Mean You’re Broken – Understanding Burnout in Neurodivergent Bodies and Minds

Do you get overwhelmed when there's a lot of noise around you? Do certain lights, textures, or smells drain your energy more than they seem to affect others? Do you struggle to get started on a task—even something you want to do—and then feel guilty for “procrastinating”? You’re not alone.

If you’re neurodivergent, burnout might not just feel worse. In neurodivergent brains, burnout might be harder to spot, harder to recover from, and harder to avoid in the first place!

This week, we’re digging into what burnout looks like in neurodivergent bodies and minds, and what we can do about it.

The Podcast That Inspired This Week

Before we jump in, I want to link a powerful episode of the Late Bloomers Podcast: “The Big Burnout”. This episode seriously resonated with me and was a big push for me to get back in to my therapist and look at my burnout through a different (and kinder) lens.

In this episode, Rox shares her story of complete burnout after pushing herself too hard for too long, ignoring her body, and losing her joy. She walks us through how her symptoms built up, physically, mentally, and emotionally, and how a combination of chronic self-neglect, masking, and performative productivity drove her to a breaking point.

She talks candidly about the emotional shutdown that followed: crying daily, feeling nothing, and not even enjoying things that once brought her joy.

The real turning point came not from doing more, but from receiving kindness.

Her healing began with small things like supplements, rest, and finally listening to her body instead of pushing past its limits.

It’s a powerful reminder that healing doesn’t always start with action - it often starts with compassion.

Why Neurodivergent Brains Burn Out Differently

Burnout in neurodivergent folks is often the cost of trying to survive in a world not designed for us.

Let’s explore how that plays out:

1. Masking and Camouflaging

Trying to blend in or meet typical expectations can take an incredible toll on those of us who aren't neurotypical. Whether it’s rehearsing conversations, making eye contact, trying to force ourselves to pay attention and really hear what someone is saying, suppressing stims, or hiding our overwhelm, the effort adds up fast.

Over time, it causes identity confusion, shutdown, or emotional numbness.

2. Executive Dysfunction

Everyday tasks like cleaning, paying bills, or switching tasks can feel like climbing mountains. This isn’t laziness. it’s your brain struggling with initiation, focus, and time perception. The gap between your intentions and your follow-through becomes a chronic source of shame. Instead of inspiring you to do something, the shame makes it even harder to yank off the band-aid and tackle that project, to-do list, or make that phone call.

3. Sensory Overload

Loud noises, bright lights, strong smells, textures, crowded spaces? They all add stress. Even if you seem composed, your nervous system may be on fire. And when there’s no safe space to recover, burnout builds.

4. People-Pleasing and Perfectionism

Because of years of being misunderstood, judged, or dismissed, many neurodivergent people try to prove our worth by saying yes to everything. Some of us were praised only when we excelled or told we were lazy if we struggled. Others grew up masking to fit in or to avoid criticism. We learned to overextend ourselves... not because we wanted to, but because we felt we had to in order to be accepted or seen as 'capable.' Over time, that constant output without rest or support leads to collapse.

This drive can also come from trauma, rejection sensitivity, or past experiences where saying no led to conflict, isolation, or being labeled difficult. It's a survival skill... but not a sustainable one.

5. Energy Regulation Differences

Our energy can be unpredictable. One day we’re hyperfocused, the next we’re completely fried. Without pacing strategies or supportive systems, it becomes impossible to build consistency—and we feel like failures for not keeping up.

What Helps

Burnout recovery isn’t just about rest. It’s about redesigning your life to honor your brain.

• Accommodations: Noise-canceling headphones, movement breaks, flexible schedules, visual supports. (ask me about my Loop 2 'earbuds' that are made to wear and be able to easily communicate with others while still limiting sound overstimulation!)

• Validation: You’re not lazy—you’re living in a system that wasn’t built with you in mind.

• Body Awareness: Learn your stress signals. They’re not flaws—they’re information.

• Self-Trust: Rebuild your relationship with your brain and body. You’re not the problem.

Even if you're neurotypical, this insight still applies. Burnout doesn’t discriminate. What helps is learning to respect your limits, advocate for what supports you, and stop judging your worth by your productivity.

Compassionate boundaries, recovery time, and nervous system regulation benefit everyone, not just those with a diagnosis.

Journal Prompt

Where in your life are you trying to meet unrealistic expectations? What would shift if you let your needs matter more than your performance?

Mini Practice

Take five minutes in a calm space.

Breathe.

Ask your body what it needs.

Then do one small thing—a drink of water, a stretch, a no.

Reclaiming the Narrative

Burnout is not a sign that you’re weak, broken, or doing life wrong. For many neurodivergent people, it’s the natural result of trying to meet unrealistic expectations in a world that often misunderstands our wiring. But there is a way forward, and it starts with changing the story we tell ourselves.

You don’t have to fix everything overnight.

You don’t need to become a different person.

You just need to begin—gently, honestly, and with one small step at a time.

Maybe that means asking for accommodations.

Maybe that means saying no more often.

Maybe it means taking a break before you feel like you’ve earned it.

Burnout recovery isn’t a finish line to cross—it’s a practice of remembering that you matter, even when you’re not producing, performing, or pushing through.

This week, our focus is this:

How can we honor our energy, our differences, and our needs without guilt?

What would change if we stopped trying to fix ourselves and started listening instead?

You’re not here to prove your worth.

You’re here to live in a way that makes space for who you really are.

And that is more than enough... as are you.