After all, if your responsibilities are wound down, then no email can obligate you. You can only volunteer to take on an obligation. It is all in your control.

Follow the thread you started here and journal about the anticipatory experience. Use your imagination and write about it until you don't have any more words. Get yourself to feel the fear more directly than just anxiety, and lean into the fear, feel it, let it inhabit you. Once you are feeling the fear, actually opening an email will not be a challenge, because you are already in a place where it feels like the worst has happened. Maybe the email(s) match your anticipation, most likely not, but nevertheless there likely is something to process from the email, to work through your reaction as to whether there is an obligation. Continue to journal about this. Take all day if you have to.

The process of getting it out as words serves a bunch of purposes. It helps your meta/reflective cognition process the anticipation/anxiety as an explicit mechanism over which you have a choice, and build an understanding of whether it is a worthwhile expenditure of energy. Almost certainly you will arrive at the understanding- not an intellectual understanding, but an experiential one, because you experienced the fear, and the reality, and you reflected on it- arrive at the experiential understanding that this is not a good use of energy, and at that you will feel tremendous relief. Next morning when you are presented with the option of opening emails, you will recall this experience that the anxiety juice was not worth the squeeze, and it will be easier.

I think it's a good sign that you're reaching out for help and advice. That shows a level of self-awareness that’s important when dealing with burnout. Of course, I’d strongly recommend speaking with a medical professional or therapist, especially if it starts affecting your day-to-day functioning. But I’ll share what helped me personally.

I went through burnout after working nonstop on a project for over six months, only for it to be shut down two weeks before launch, for reasons completely beyond my control. It hit me hard, but I didn’t realize it right away. It crept in slowly, a lack of focus, no motivation, no excitement, just a kind of numb disengagement.

Here’s what helped me:

Acknowledging what I was going through was the first real step forward. Just putting a name to the experience gave me a bit of clarity.

I started reading books about stress, burnout, and anxiety. Not because one book had all the answers, but because the act of engaging with helpful material gave me structure and a sense of progress. I also read lots of fiction to change my mindset.

I talked to close friends and family. Just expressing how I felt, especially about the project, helped release some of the pressure.

I experimented with small activities that felt even slightly interesting. That varied day by day. Some days I journaled, other days I took longer dog walks or spent more time at the gym.

Recovery wasn’t linear. It wasn’t fast. But creating space to decompress and explore what helped me, even in small ways, eventually got me going again.

One important thing I learned is that burnout doesn’t go away with a single solution. It’s not like taking a pill for a headache. It took time, reflection, and consistent self-care. For some, professional support may also be a key part of that.

So my best advice is: Don’t pressure yourself to “fix” it overnight. Stay aware, try things that feel nourishing, and don’t hesitate to ask for help.

Of course, everyone’s experience is different. If it feels overwhelming or doesn’t improve, definitely reach out to a mental health professional. You don’t have to figure this out alone, support is out there.

Sincerely hope this helped.

It's funny how, as a wise phrase I've heard before, "nothing is ever as good or as bad as it seems"

After a few weeks of whoever might have emailed you, but you didn't see it, or maybe they never emailed? But at least you can continue your life and still see messages that probably matter.

Email sucks in this way, it's hard to fully ignore it, but you can fully ignore certain senders - which I have absolutely had to do in the past.

Time + the above strategy will really help, I think.

-- Disclaimer, I work on 'better' email products.