Productivity Culture Nearly Broke Me, So I Took a Sabbatical

Written By Safrianna Lughna

For as long as I’ve been working, I've dreamed of taking a real sabbatical—a significant chunk of time away from my business and work to completely rejuvenate myself. While I'm still working on the "completely rejuvenated" part, this year, I finally managed to take almost an entire month off from traditional work.

And let me tell you, I learned a hell of a lot about why it's so hard for me to rest.

As a writer, speaker, CEO, and Guide, I've been running on all cylinders for years. I love what I do, but I realized that my mindset around work and giving to others was blocking my own creative writing in the process. 

I've been caretaking others since I was a small child, overloaded by trauma by the time I was five and even more so by ten. I was a gifted kid, always striving, always pushing. I graduated top of my class, dove straight into work, then college, then juggling both, before finally starting my own business at 30. 

With a life like that, it's no wonder productivity culture was seared into my mind as "the way."

However, the body can only take so much pushing without rest and self-care before it collapses. I learned that the hard way, developing a slew of mysterious chronic illnesses on top of my complex PTSD. 

It took my business bestie Meryl Hayton to give me the reality check I needed. In early 2023, she stopped me mid-vent, talking about all the things I was going to do while already exhausted.

 "Something is going to have to give," she said. "It might be your business or it might be your health, but something is going to have to give." 

That hit me hard. I knew I didn't want it to be me, my health, my sanity. I knew I had more to offer the world, and I couldn’t put myself on the chopping block doing it.

So, I let my therapy practice go in August 2023 and started untangling my relationship with hustle culture and overwork. I dove back into my own writing (publishing Bumble Bees & White Balloons), ran a retreat in Sedona, and examined my dreams for myself. 

But even after all that goodness, I fell into old patterns quickly: I took on projects that drove me right to the brink of burnout all over again.

I got my wake-up call, loud and clear: I overgive. I self-sacrifice. I people-please, still.

That's when I decided to give myself the gift of rest for my 35th birthday. I wanted to understand where this cycle was still coming from and get to the bottom of it once and for all.

Over the course of June, I went within to liberate the wounded parts of me blocking me from reconnecting with my Inner Child. During this healing work, I realized that doing "the most" was a continued trauma response from my childhood. I was always told to "do a good job," "be a good girl," and everything would work out. Far from it.

Ultimately, I burnt myself out and masked for so long—but I am done with that! Even without a large caseload of clients, as a writer, speaker, CEO, and Guide, I’ve still been working extended weeks for months to help Living LUNA find its stride, and June was my first test of what would happen if I created a plan and stepped away. 

So, that’s where I’ve been this last month. I did work a bit (writing SOPs when they popped in, doing a few lives and my Moon Circles), but not nearly to the extent that I normally do. 

First, I’d like to acknowledge the plan I created allowed my team to continue working without me and gave me a clear place to pick up when coming back. Brilliant! 10/10 would make a plan each time I take a break!

Second, I want to note that one month isn’t nearly enough to “fix” a lifetime of negative patterning. I still struggle with the compulsory feeling of needing to work or to make myself work when someone else is working to be worthy, but I recognize that as a story now. I'm more determined than ever to allow the process of work to be joyful and fun, and to keep fighting for workers rights and fair compensation all over the world.

Yes, there's still "much work to be done" within myself, my business, and the world at large. But I know now that the process cannot be rushed. When rushed or forced, burnout is the only outcome, no matter how much I love what I do. 

Honoring my unique rhythm and flow is the most important thing I can do. It's why I've always been passionate about helping others find their own patterns and cycles. When we're aware and awake, we can influence our patterns, either improving them, expanding them, or doing away with them to create more aligned ways of being.

So here's to rest, to play, to honoring our Inner Child. Here's to untangling ourselves from toxic productivity culture and redefining what it means to live and work on our own terms. It's an ongoing and often challenging journey, but it's one I'm committed to—for myself and for all of you.

This sabbatical was just the beginning of a new chapter for me. Throughout this month, I'll be sharing more about my journey—the insights, the challenges, the breakthroughs. I invite you to join me on the Living LUNA blog, stay tuned for our newsletters, subscribe on YouTube for live events, and of course, join us on Discord if you want to chat directly.

Let's explore what it means to untangle ourselves from toxic productivity culture and redefine success on our own terms.

I'll be diving into practices for honoring our Inner Child, tools for navigating creative blocks, and strategies for prioritizing rest and self-care. I'll be raw, I'll be real, and I'll be right here, doing the work alongside you.

Have a specific question you want me to address this month? Reply to this blog–I read every response!

So stay tuned. There's so much more to come.

Loving You Fiercely,

Safrianna Lughna

This month, I hope to participate in the Ultimate Blog Challenge and share wisdom gleaned from my sabbatical, butterfly medicine, and more. Feel free to follow along if you want to learn more about my story! #UltimateBlogChallenge https://www.ultimateblogchallenge.com/

P.S. I'd love your support in continuing to get my poetry collection into the hands of readers all over the world! Feel free to snag your own copy, buy it as a gift, or recommend A Woman's Work to someone who you think could use some inspiration!

Safrianna Lughna
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