Watch the Video
HEALING WITH BRIAN
Listen and fill in the blanks:
Linh was known for her . She managed a successful marketing agency, juggled multiple clients, and was always on top of the latest trends.
To outsiders, she seemed unstoppable—someone who could handle any challenge that came her .
Her colleagues admired her for her resilience and discipline, and her family often boasted about her .
But deep inside, Linh knew something was .
It had started . First, it was the occasional headache she attributed to stress.
Then, it was the sleepless nights, tossing and turning, thinking about projects that seemed never-.
Her to-do list had taken over her . No matter how much she accomplished, the list kept growing.
And with it, the pressure she placed on .
Her mornings were spent rushing from one task to the next, grabbing a quick coffee and skipping .
By the time she sat down at her desk, her phone was already buzzing with emails and .
She worked late into the night, often losing track of time until her eyes burned from staring at the .
Weekends weren’t much better—she found herself checking her phone for work updates even when she was supposed to be spending time with friends and .
Linh told herself it was just a . She believed that if she worked hard enough now, she would eventually earn the right to relax.
But the reality was, she couldn’t remember the last time she felt truly .
Even when she took short breaks, her mind was always racing, thinking about the next .
Then, one day, her body gave . It was a Thursday afternoon, and she was in the middle of a client presentation when her vision blurred.
Her head spun, and she felt a wave of .
She tried to push through, to focus on the task at hand, but her body refused to .
The next thing she knew, she was on the floor, her colleagues rushing to her .
The doctors told her it was burnout—complete physical and mental .
Linh was ordered to take time off .
For someone who had built her identity around being productive, this was a .
How could she just stop working when there was so much to ?
She felt guilty, ashamed even, as if taking a break meant she had failed in some .
The first few days at home were .
Linh tried to rest, but her mind wouldn’t let .
She kept thinking about the emails piling up, the projects falling .
But as the days passed, something inside her began to .
She realized that she had been living in survival mode for so long that she had forgotten how to simply .
On the fourth day of her forced break, Linh decided to take a .
It was a sunny morning, the kind she used to love but hadn’t paid attention to in .
She walked through the park near her apartment, noticing how the leaves rustled gently in the breeze and how the sunlight filtered through the .
For the first time in what felt like forever, Linh allowed herself to breathe .
She hadn’t realized how tense she had been, always rushing from one thing to the .
She sat on a bench and just watched the world go .
Kids played on the swings, birds chirped in the distance, and a couple strolled hand in hand along the .
There was no urgency, no pressing need to check her phone or think about .
It was just her, the moment, and a feeling she hadn’t experienced in years—.
As the days turned into weeks, Linh began to rediscover parts of herself she had .
She picked up the guitar she hadn’t touched in years, started journaling again, and took time to reconnect with friends over slow, unhurried .
She read books that weren’t related to work and watched movies she’d .
At first, it felt strange, as if she was wasting .
But slowly, she realized that these moments of rest were giving her something she hadn’t even realized she was missing—.
In those quiet moments, Linh started to reflect on why she had pushed herself so hard for so .
She had always equated productivity with self-.
If she wasn’t working, she wasn’t .
But now, with some distance from her work, she began to see things .
Rest wasn’t a reward she had to .
It was a necessity, a crucial part of maintaining balance in her .
After a month away from work, Linh felt like a different .
When she finally returned to her office, she approached things with a new .
She set boundaries
for herself, making sure to take regular breaks and not let her work consume every waking moment.
She learned to delegate more and trust her team to handle things without her constant .
But the biggest change wasn’t in her work habits; it was in how she viewed .
She no longer saw rest as a luxury or a .
Instead, she understood that allowing herself time to recharge made her stronger, more focused, and ultimately, more effective in both her work and personal .
Now, when Linh feels the familiar pull of burnout creeping in, she listens to her body and .
She takes a step back, a deep breath, and reminds herself that rest is just as important as .
And in that space of stillness, she finds the clarity and peace that helps her move .
Answer Key:
- 1. energy
- 2. way
- 3. achievements
- 4. wrong
- 5. gradually
- 6. ending
- 7. life
- 8. herself
- 9. breakfast
- 10. messages
- 11. screen
- 12. family
- 13. phase
- 14. relaxed
- 15. deadline
- 16. out
- 17. dizziness
- 18. cooperate
- 19. side
- 20. exhaustion
- 21. immediately
- 22. nightmare
- 23. do
- 24. way
- 25. agonizing
- 26. her
- 27. behind
- 28. shift
- 29. be
- 30. walk
- 31. years
- 32. trees
- 33. deeply
- 34. next
- 35. by
- 36. path
- 37. work
- 38. calm
- 39. neglected
- 40. lunches
- 41. missed
- 42. time
- 43. perspective
- 44. long
- 45. worth
- 46. valuable
- 47. differently
- 48. earn
- 49. life
- 50. person
- 51. mindset
- 52. oversight
- 53. herself
- 54. weakness
- 55. life
- 56. mind
- 57. work
- 58. forward
Transcript:
Linh was known for her energy. She managed a successful marketing agency, juggled multiple clients, and was always on top of the latest trends. To outsiders, she seemed unstoppable—someone who could handle any challenge that came her way.
Her colleagues admired her for her resilience and discipline, and her family often boasted about her achievements. But deep inside, Linh knew something was wrong.
It had started gradually. First, it was the occasional headache she attributed to stress. Then, it was the sleepless nights, tossing and turning, thinking about projects that seemed never-ending. Her to-do list had taken over her life. No matter how much she accomplished, the list kept growing. And with it, the pressure she placed on herself.
Her mornings were spent rushing from one task to the next, grabbing a quick coffee and skipping breakfast. By the time she sat down at her desk, her phone was already buzzing with emails and messages. She worked late into the night, often losing track of time until her eyes burned from staring at the screen. Weekends weren’t much better—she found herself checking her phone for work updates even when she was supposed to be spending time with friends and family.
Linh told herself it was just a phase. She believed that if she worked hard enough now, she would eventually earn the right to relax. But the reality was, she couldn’t remember the last time she felt truly relaxed. Even when she took short breaks, her mind was always racing, thinking about the next deadline.
Then, one day, her body gave out. It was a Thursday afternoon, and she was in the middle of a client presentation when her vision blurred. Her head spun, and she felt a wave of dizziness. She tried to push through, to focus on the task at hand, but her body refused to cooperate. The next thing she knew, she was on the floor, her colleagues rushing to her side.
The doctors told her it was burnout—complete physical and mental exhaustion. Linh was ordered to take time off immediately. For someone who had built her identity around being productive, this was a nightmare. How could she just stop working when there was so much to do? She felt guilty, ashamed even, as if taking a break meant she had failed in some way.
The first few days at home were agonizing. Linh tried to rest, but her mind wouldn’t let her. She kept thinking about the emails piling up, the projects falling behind. But as the days passed, something inside her began to shift. She realized that she had been living in survival mode for so long that she had forgotten how to simply be.
On the fourth day of her forced break, Linh decided to take a walk. It was a sunny morning, the kind she used to love but hadn’t paid attention to in years. She walked through the park near her apartment, noticing how the leaves rustled gently in the breeze and how the sunlight filtered through the trees. For the first time in what felt like forever, Linh allowed herself to breathe deeply. She hadn’t realized how tense she had been, always rushing from one thing to the next.
She sat on a bench and just watched the world go by. Kids played on the swings, birds chirped in the distance, and a couple strolled hand in hand along the path. There was no urgency, no pressing need to check her phone or think about work. It was just her, the moment, and a feeling she hadn’t experienced in years—calm.
As the days turned into weeks, Linh began to rediscover parts of herself she had neglected. She picked up the guitar she hadn’t touched in years, started journaling again, and took time to reconnect with friends over slow, unhurried lunches. She read books that weren’t related to work and watched movies she’d missed. At first, it felt strange, as if she was wasting time. But slowly, she realized that these moments of rest were giving her something she hadn’t even realized she was missing—perspective.
In those quiet moments, Linh started to reflect on why she had pushed herself so hard for so long. She had always equated productivity with self-worth. If she wasn’t working, she wasn’t valuable. But now, with some distance from her work, she began to see things differently. Rest wasn’t a reward she had to earn. It was a necessity, a crucial part of maintaining balance in her life.
Ah, I see! You want me to continue the process and create the three formats (fill-in-the-blanks, answer key, and paragraph format) for this section of the story. Here we go! 1. Fill-in-the-blank Exercise:After a month away from work, Linh felt like a different .
When she finally returned to her office, she approached things with a new .
She set boundaries for herself, making sure to take regular breaks and not let her work consume every waking .
She learned to delegate more and trust her team to handle things without her constant .
But the biggest change wasn’t in her work habits; it was in how she viewed .
She no longer saw rest as a luxury or a .
Instead, she understood that allowing herself time to recharge made her stronger, more focused, and ultimately, more effective in both her work and personal .
Now, when Linh feels the familiar pull of burnout creeping in, she listens to her body and .
She takes a step back, a deep breath, and reminds herself that rest is just as important as .
And in that space of stillness, she finds the clarity and peace that helps her move .
2. Answer Key:After a month away from work, Linh felt like a different person. When she finally returned to her office, she approached things with a new mindset. She set boundaries for herself, making sure to take regular breaks and not let her work consume every waking moment. She learned to delegate more and trust her team to handle things without her constant oversight.
But the biggest change wasn’t in her work habits; it was in how she viewed herself. She no longer saw rest as a luxury or a weakness. Instead, she understood that allowing herself time to recharge made her stronger, more focused, and ultimately, more effective in both her work and personal life.
Now, when Linh feels the familiar pull of burnout creeping in, she listens to her body and mind. She takes a step back, a deep breath, and reminds herself that rest is just as important as work. And in that space of stillness, she finds the clarity and peace that helps her move forward.
