Burnout Account: Kari Carter-Cherelus - Dental Hygienist & Burnout Coach

Kari Carter-Cherelus - Burnout Coach

Hi, my name is Kari Carter-Cherelus. I am a dental hygienist, a public speaker, an author, and a writer. A couple of years ago, I suffered from burnout. I didn't even know what that was. I just knew that I didn't like where I was working. It was toxic for me. I dealt with belittling, gaslighting, discrimination, micro-aggressions daily, as well as bullying. That's something that affects many in the healthcare industry. This led me to have mental health issues, as well as physical ailments. Sometimes I felt sick. Sometimes I was crying. Sometimes I had a lot of body aches and pains that didn't necessarily go away, even when I sought chiropractic care or massage therapy, or if I tried to correct it with different ergonomic means. It wasn't until I sought help in the form of therapy, as well as a coach, and a consultant, that I started working on myself and making necessary self-changes. I didn’t find ultimate relief from my burnout until I made impactful changes such as leaving that toxic environment, investing in my career, learning to have a voice, and learning to advocate for myself. I do caution people that different personalities are prone to burnout, and I always say I'm in recovery. I always have to work on my boundaries, making sure that I'm not allowing others to dictate how I should act or what I should do for them. I always have to make sure that I'm not causing myself burnout by taking on too many responsibilities, always saying yes, or continuing to be a people pleaser. So that's just a little bit of my story. I often go a little bit farther into it with the different articles that I write or in my courses. However, my story is relatable to many as it is similar to their own story. Many people suffer from burnout in the industry. That is why it is imperative that we notice the signs in ourselves as well as in others. We have to make sure that we are not ignoring different symptoms and signs that are present in ourselves and others because doing so can be quite costly. We don’t want a fatal incident in the ones that we love or ourselves to occur. We want everyone to seek the proper help that is needed so as to prevent, manage, and recover from burnout.

Thank you for listening to a little bit of my story.