Dr. Andrew Huberman

Don't despair.

It's very clear that the brain can recover, and I wouldn't waste a single moment thinking about what you didn't do.

Also, my time machine's broken, your time machine's broken.

I realize that doesn't create a lot of comfort, but it's unlikely that you did substantial damage

unlikely you did substantial damage unless you did that your whole life and we're talking about a conversation that's happening late, late in life.

But even then, more sleep would be better.

Do you believe in burnout?

If so, what would be a recommendation protocol to relinquish burnout once it's already occurred?

This is a very interesting question.

You know, we don't quite know what burnout is.

And it can come from a combination of things.

And typically, burnout comes not during the stress period, but several months afterwards.

The adrenals, these two little nuggets above our kidneys and our lower back, are capable of driving so much neural energy in us that we can do all sorts of things for a very long time, even in the absence of food, as long as we have water and salt.

You know, the adrenals, because they kick out adrenaline and cortisol, and by the way, are involved in salt appetite.

There's a reason for that, because you need that.

The adrenals can keep us going, and there is no such thing as true adrenal burnout, because the adrenals don't burn out.

You've got enough adrenaline in your adrenals for two lifetimes, but there is an adrenal insufficiency syndrome, so that's a real thing.

It's rare, but it exists.

But burnout seems to be, in my mind, more related to psychological burnout.

And I'm not a psychologist, but I'm a fan of the poet David White, and he has this beautiful poem that is either entitled or somehow includes burnout.