It is impossible to specify the exact moment when my burn-out started. In some ways, it has been building up since I was young, and I have had periods of not feeling well as long as I can remember.
There is, however, a specific day I remember where things started to feel off. At the time, I was working on a very stressful project. Basically, I was given a task I did not know how to complete. My manager was working on 2 other projects simultaneously and did not have time to coach me.
I did not know how to complete the task, did not have anyone to express this to, and felt a deep sense of looming danger. I had a feeling that at some point, somebody would discover that I did not know what I was doing. As I had never “failed” in that sense ever before in my life, some sort of panic started to build up.
That weekend, when I woke up on a Sunday after a night out with friends, I felt “on” as soon as I woke up. My mind was racing when I knew I should be tired from a night out. From that point, everything was about to go further downhill.