Work has started to take more out of you than it gives back. You feel more drained than you used to, maybe shorter with people, or quietly dreading the week ahead. It is a wearing place to be, and while things are still early there are some straightforward ways to ease it.

Where it tends to come from

The tiredness, the shorter fuse and the dip in your usual interest tend to build up when work has been demanding for a while and there has not been enough time to recover in between. It is easier to ease off now than once it has run down further. Nothing here needs to be dramatic, a few small changes across your week can be enough to shift the balance.

Put some recovery back in

When work is taking more than it gives, one of the most useful things is to get a bit more real recovery into your week. Specific, small changes tend to stick better than good intentions.

You could try:

• Getting to bed twenty minutes or so earlier on a couple of nights this week.
• Taking a proper lunch break away from your desk, rather than eating while you work.
• Putting one thing you enjoy back into the week, like a walk, a class, or seeing a friend.

Ease and set limits on the load

Alongside more recovery, taking a little off your plate keeps things from tipping further. It is lighter to set a few limits now than to claw time back later.

You could try:

• Choosing your top two or three tasks each morning and letting the smaller ones wait.
• Picking a finish time, say six o'clock, and shutting the laptop then.
• Passing one task to someone else, or pushing a non-urgent deadline back a few days.

Starting small

Because things have not run down too far, small and steady changes are often enough to take the pressure off. It can help to tell someone you trust how work has been, a friend, your partner or your manager, since that sometimes opens up practical changes too. The aim is just to ease off a little now, while you still have room to.

In short

• Take the early signs seriously rather than pushing past them.
• Get to bed a little earlier and take a real lunch break.
• Keep to two or three priorities a day and a set finish time.
• Hand over or push back one thing that does not have to be yours.
• Tell someone you trust how work has been.

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