Because of you

Thank you for changing my dia-
pers when I was a baby to being 
my biggest cheerleader growing 
up. I never feel lonely because of 
you. For saving me from drown-
ing in countless pools, fountains 
and other near-death experiences 
I’m sure I had. I always feel com-
fortable testing my boundaries 
because of you. For downloading 
my first iPod with all your music 
and making me hip by introduc-
ing me to artists like Maroon 5 and 
Eminem. I have incredible music 
taste today because of you. For giv-
ing me food every day after school 
when our mom started working. I 
never went hungry because of you. 
For keeping every secret I’ve ever 
told you. I never have to deal with 
my thoughts eating at me alone 
because of you.
Thank you for teaching me right 

AAKASH RAY
MiC Staff Writer

Understanding burn-out for BIPOC womxn

Read more at michigandaily.com

 Design by Hibah Chughtai

This summer has held some of 
the ugliest as well as the most radi-
cally beautiful moments of my life 
thus far. In its entirety, this season 
has taken it out of me. By it, I mean 
my energy, my tears, my heartache 
and my time. While I appreciated 
all of the work I was doing while 
trying to cope with living in a pan-
demic, I can’t say that I always did 
it well. I have a habit of dropping off 
the grid for periods of time, letting 
myself drift into a hermetic state 
and only popping back up after sev-
eral days. It is even harder for me 
to name this as something that is a 
symptom of larger problems rather 
than a quirky flaw that I have. I get 
burned out, and instead of dealing 
with guilt or stress, I disappear. 
Over the past few weeks, I have 
had this conversation with multi-
ple friends who identify as womxn, 
and there seems to be a recurring 
pattern. We put so much pressure 
on ourselves to be the best stu-
dents, look beautiful always, advo-
cate for ourselves, live as models 
of what womxn should be, act as 
supports for our friends and family 
and thrive romantically. I am not 
saying all of these equally affect 
all womxn or that they encompass 
all of our troubles, but I acknowl-

VICTORIA MINKA
MiC Staff Writer
edge that they’re deeply real. The 
spinning plates of life are hard to 
grapple with and contribute to this 
burnout. When I say burnout, I am 
referring to the World Health Orga-
nization’s definition, of a syndrome 
of chronic workplace stress that 
has not been well managed and has 
led to energy depletion, exhaustion, 
as well as other symptoms. Women 
are more likely to experience burn-
out than their counterparts, par-
ticularly in the workplace. We hold 
ourselves to the highest standards, 
both at home and at work, and we 
so often are not recognized for our 
efforts. This is an exhausting cycle 
to live within, and it is impossible 
not to be tired from it. Womxn, 
especially womxn who identify as 
black, Indigenous and people of 
color, hold themselves to a stan-
dard that is unattainable, but we 
don’t know any other way to be. We 
were taught to try to thrive with 
breadcrumbs, tricked into believ-
ing there was only so much to go 
around so we would have to settle 
with less. We were made to believe 
that by making ourselves smaller, 
there would be ways for us to slip 
between the cracks and make it 
through. In reality, shaping our-
selves to the cisgender, white, het-
eropatriarchal system only means 
erasing or drowning out aspects 
of our cultures, histories and iden-

 Design by Hibah Chughtai

from wrong when our parents 
couldn’t. I learned early on not 
to use words that can hurt other 
people and the importance of fam-
ily because of you. For helping me 
pass through every step of school 
by proofreading my essays, pushing 
me to think about my career and 
giving me general life lessons when 
they were most timely. I learned 
to be a functional adult because of 
you. For covering for me whenever 
I needed support, whether that be 
when my car broke down in the 
middle of Ohio without our parents 
knowing or when you invited me to 
your apartment in Chicago and let 
me get away from the noise of col-
lege. I always know the first per-
son I can call because of you. For 
always dealing with our parents in 
the most civil way and never saying 
anything without precise calcula-
tion. I recognized the significance 
of emotional intelligence because 
of you.

I was raised by you and our 
mom, although at very different 
levels. While our mom bore the 
responsibility of being an author-
ity figure in the household, you are 
the one who could empathize with 
me as my equal — who shares many 
of the same childhood memories 
that I vaguely remember. You take 
all of what someone else might 
perceive as my flaws and make 
me feel comfortable with them. 
You forgive me for not speaking 
as much, knowing I enjoy time to 
myself, but still somehow earnestly 
push me to escape my bubble. You 
respect my decisions, fears and 
dreams no matter how irrational 
or unplanned they may be, vowing 
instead to work through them with 
me. You stand as an equal no mat-
ter how much older and more suc-
cessful you become and never let 
distance keep us apart.
All relationships change with 
time, but I know you will always 

tities. I think burnout in BIPOC 
womxn has everything to do with 
being told to change ourselves to fit 
an oppressive system. 
The first step in realizing there 
is a problem is naming it. Nam-
ing that we suffer from burnout 
gives us back our power. It lets us 
recognize that we are human and 
all of the effort and toil we put in 

does place stress upon us. I found 
that when I name my burnout and 
take care of myself best is when 
I am surrounded by womxn who 
are strong enough to know when 
to lean on others. They allow me 
to share how I am doing with them 
and affirm me in the direction I am 
growing. By working together to 
weave our own support networks 

Read more at michigandaily.com

be my biggest role model. You 
were the first person who taught 
me self-awareness and showed 
me disagreement is worthwhile 
when combined with integrity and 

respect. And I know you have many 
more lessons you will teach me in 
the coming years and beyond. 

10

Thursday, August 13, 2020
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
MICHIGAN IN COLOR

and lift each other up when we’ve 
fallen, we can begin to change 
the narrative around how we talk 
about ourselves and the challenges 
we face. Going into this upcom-
ing fall season, I will continue to 
appreciate the wonderful...

