Coaching by the Cards: Bouncing Back from Burnout
Welcome to the latest entry of my Tarot column, Coaching by the Cards! In this column, I address questions and situations presented to me, using the Tarot.
The column is in a “Dear Abby” format.
With that said, let’s look at the situation submitted by this reader:
Dear James,
I visited your site recently, and came to your Thirty-Three Six Wellness page. I really resonated with the story of your experience with burnout. I am going through what you did then; I am working in a corporate job, and putting in a lot of overtime hours at the moment.
It is beginning to take its toll. I am feeling both a lack of competence and confidence (as well as the physical exhaustion) the more hours I put in; it seems that, even though I’m working more, I don’t see that I am accomplishing more in terms of productivity. I know that this can’t continue and that I need to make some serious changes.
So, my question is, What do I need to know and do to begin to bounce back from this burnout experience?
Thanking you in advance,
Bouncing Back from Burnout
Dear Bouncing Back,
Thank you for taking time to browse the site. I’m glad that my burnout experience resonated with you; that was one of my hopes and intentions when I shared it: I wanted to be able to help those with a similar situation. That is the reason I selected your submission, because I could relate to it all too well.
The deck I used for the consultation is the Psychic Tarot Oracle Deck. The deck is different from the standard Tarot deck, as it is a combination Tarot and oracle deck. An oracle deck is a deck of cards that have uplifting, positive messages on them, and are great for intuitive readers. This particular deck has removed the Court Cards of a standard Tarot deck, as well as all the number 10 cards, and replaced them with Chakra cards. Chakras are the seven energy wheels that are aligned with the spine of the human body; the first being the Root Chakra at the base of the spine, going to the last, which is the Crown Chakra, which is at the top of the head.
The reason I explain this is this was the reason behind my selection of the deck. I wanted to see if any Chakra cards would appear in the reading, as this would highlight a particular body area associated with the burnout you are experiencing. Moreover, it would indicate the potential energy imbalance I could send distance Reiki to you, as part of your healing treatment, should you be open and receptive to that.
I conducted a simple three-card spread, asking this question: What can the Tarot-Oracle tell me about Bouncing Back’s restoration to optimum well-being?
The three cards I drew are as follows: Wisdom (card 5); Patience (card 14); and Transformation (card 13). I also felt an intuitive prompting to pull another card, calling it the “surprise element” card; this card was Red 3 (which is the Physical suit), and has the keywords on the card “Recognition and Reward.”
The first thing I noticed about the three cards was that they are all cards from the Major Arcana. Cards from the Major Arcana carry more weight in a reading, typically, and especially so when they are the Ruling Majority in a spread, such as this. They are an indication of spiritual lessons and principles being taught and learned and applied to the situation at hand. They reflect the seriousness of the question being posed. There is a higher level of awareness being addressed here. Also, this can mean that there are conditions and circumstances beyond your control about the situation. Lastly, Major Arcana cards in majority can mean that any actions taken or decisions made will have long-term consequences and ramifications here.
I take all this in, as it lets me know what you might want to consider (the Tarot is not about shoulds and oughts; its job is to provide information and insight, and let you choose the best course of action as a result) the seriousness of the burnout, in that it has spiritual implications, and is here as a teacher, showing me something you need to learn about the way you are living life. Also, this lets me know that there have been external circumstances and forces, beyond your control, that have played a major part in the state you find yourself. I know you are wise enough to also know that you have made certain choices in this situation that have led you here, and you are being asked to accept responsibility for your part.
The second thing that caught my attention is that the numerology of the first two cards is the same: 5. The Wisdom card is numbered 5, while Patience, numbered 14, reduces to 5 (14=1+4=5). Repeating numbers can be important, and having 5 repeat means that there is an element of change involved in the situation. Also, 5 is the number associated with karma, which is the spiritual path that involves learning lessons from physical and material experiences. Again, the implication is that the experience of burnout is a lesson you are learning for your spiritual growth and evolvement.
I then went on to interpret the individual cards:
The first card, in the position I usually label as “something about the situation,” is Wisdom, which is traditionally known as the Hierophant. This card is about knowledge and higher learning. So, the implication, again, is that there is something to be learned about the burnout experience. In the image on the card, a man holds a book in his hand. The book symbolizes knowledge, and information sources; it can suggest possessing knowledge and/or information that will be shared with others. It can also mean “going by the book,” meaning following certain established rules and regulations. It can also mean following conventional wisdom or advice, and taking a traditional approach. This card may be asking you to read up on burnout, to become more familiar with this type of dis-ease.
The second card, in the position I refer to as “something that needs consideration, or an action step to take,” is Patience, which is traditionally known as Temperance. This is the card of a spiritual healer (which is a great card for Reiki practitioners, such as myself, which reinforces my intention of incorporating distance Reiki with this consultation), so there is a healing taking place with the burnout. This card is about combining and blending things. I see this as the combination of the traditional (along with Wisdom) and the alternative, in terms of coming up with ways to treat the burnout. In my own experience of burnout, I started a regimen of supplements such as Echinacea and Goldenseal, along with St. John’s Wort and vitamin B-12.
Since this is a card of an aspect of the situation you need to consider, I had a pun on the word “patience,” which became “patients.” Since I am not a doctor, you might want to consider seeing a general physician (if you have one), as well as a naturopath or holistic health practitioner, like I did when I experienced Bell’s Palsy (also in my story on the Thirty-Three Six Wellness page) for possible alternative treatment options. In looking at the image on the card, the words “growth process” came into my mind. As I look at this image, I consider that most natural remedies are plant-based (the flower emerging from the seed in the woman’s hand).
Whatever you decide to do, the most important message with this card is for you to seek balance here, as it is a card of moderation. It is an acknowledgment that you are indeed juggling too much.
The last of the three cards, in the position of “possible outcome,” is Transformation. Transformation is about change, and that some aspect of the situation is coming to completion. Simply, the burnout will, at some point, be gone, and you will be changed by having had the experience. Being a card of elimination, it can mean that things will be eliminated (cut out, removed) from your life; those things would be things that were negatively contributing to the state of burnout you’ve found yourself in.
The surprise element card, Red 3, or “Recognition and Reward,” has the image of a man, standing on a raised stage, taking a bow. He is wearing a medal around his neck, and has a spotlight shining down on him. It appears as if he has won the top honor in a contest or competition of some kind, which is indicative of recognition and achievement. This card is a work-related card usually, in the sense that your work is being noticed.
When I first looked at the image on the card, I heard the Madonna song “Take a Bow” in my head; that’s just how my intuition works sometimes.
It can mean that the burnout has reached a certain stage or level, and will not progress any further; you have started to take the necessary steps to repair the “damage” done (simply by recognizing that you are burned out), and the reparations will be gradual, just as how the burnout reached the stage/level it has (gradually).
Cards from the Red suit are the same as the suit of Pentacles in the traditional Tarot. As such, cards from this suit are connected to the physical: career, money, material possessions, and health (physical health, which is connected to the physical body). This aspect of the card is not lost on me. The Physical cards can also be about resources, foundations, and structures, but also about what we place value and worth on (these are more intangible aspects of this suit). With that, this card is asking you to consider the value and the worth of having and being at optimum wellness.
Thank you for allowing me this opportunity to read the Tarot for you about this matter. I hope it has proven to be useful to you.
And there you have it. You have just seen how I consult the Tarot in context to a question or situation, using a short three-card spread. And, just as I hope it has been helpful to Bouncing Back, I hope you found it informative as well. I would love to hear what you think. You can share your thoughts in the comments section below.
If you have a question or concern that you would like to gain some insight using the Tarot, and think “Coaching by the Cards” would be a great forum for it, send me your submission, via e-mail, to james@jameshimm.com, with Coaching by the Cards in the subject line.
If you’re interested in a private consultation with me, check out the information on my Tarot Consultations page and the Tarot Consultation Code of Ethics on my Ethics, Policies, and Procedures page.
Your Card-carrying Coach,
James