How a Gap Year Reduces COVID and Post-Secondary Burnout

Raise your hand if you are feeling burnt out. If your hand is up, know you are not alone. Parents are burnt out, teachers are burnt out, employees and employers are burnt out, and students are burnt out. It's a very common experience that we're all having two-plus years into this pandemic life - something we never thought we would experience. We all need a little bit of a break from everything that's going on.

While a gap year is a break from formal schooling, it's not a break from learning or a break from your goals. This is an opportunity for you to take care of that burnout, and to feel excited and joyful. Learn more about how it’s possible to use a gap year to be productive and reignite your mental health in today’s episode!

Topics Discussed

• How you cannot heal in the same environment that hurts you.
• Why trying to be normal in a time that is not necessarily normal can be traumatic to your mental health.
• How knowing the real reason why we are tired is significant and what to do about it.
• The importance of finding excitement and joy on your own terms for your gap year.
• Your permission to delay university or college for your mental health.
• Why using a gap year as a tool can help alleviate burnout to set you on a healthy path forward.

Resources Mentioned In This Episode

• 7 types of rest TEDx talk by Dr. Saundra Dalton-Smith “The real reason why we are tired and what to do about it” https://youtu.be/ZGNN4EPJzGk
• Get support to light up your gap year! Book a free 30-min call: https://www.cangap.ca/call

Connect With The Canadian Gap Year Association

• Join “Gapper Connect” on Discord to connect with students thinking about a gap year, current Gappers, and alum all in one place! https://www.cangap.ca/gapperconnect
• Find more resources at the Can Gap website https://www.cangap.ca/
• Follow on Instagram http://www.instagram.com/cangapassociation/
• Follow on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/ucangap
• Follow on Twitter https://twitter.com/ucangap/status/276178230694772736
• Follow on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCuBit8gLXEOxaBggoGmykjQ