What is Burnout?
“Burnout is a state of emotional, mental, & often physical exhaustion brought on by prolonged or repeated stress”, according to Psychology today.
As many as 75% of US workers have suffered from burnout & that work related stress in the US, and this leads to 120.000 deaths a year, according to researchers at everyonesocial. Swedish workculture have the same kind of problem; 7300 people every month, are put on stress related sick leave, of which 79% are women, according to Försäkringskassan.
Does Stress lead to Burnout?
Stress in itself isn’t harmful, but when it goes on for long periods of time or happens frequently & you don’t have the time to fully recharge in-between, the stress can become harmful. According to WHO, Burn-out is a condition that is work related, that is due to chronic workplace stress that hasn’t been correctly handled. That being said, work can be many things, for example studies, caring for a loved one, in a relationship or even being chronically ill & having to deal with all that entails etc. it’s not limited to being employed.
WHO classifies it into 3 categories:
- Feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion
- Increased mental distance from one’s job, or feelings of negativism or cynicism about one’s job
- Reduced professional efficacy
What Are The Symptoms?
Verywellhealth, classifies the symptoms into 12 categories:
- Exhaustion, the core symptom of being constantly exhausted mentally, emotionally & physically.
- Feelings of dread & lack of motivation
- Your mind wanders, making hard to complete tasks when your concentration & focus are disrupted.
- Difficulty sleeping, either falling asleep &/or waking up many times.
- Inconsistent appetite, everything from having no appetite to overeating.
- Cynicism & Irritability, affecting for example your patience with others & yourself.
- Feeling useless, your self-confidence is affected, which can be affected by the fact that you don’t get all the things you want done.
- Depression can often occur at the same time as burn-out. But sometimes one occurs without the other. Depression is something that can affect all aspects of life, whereas burn-out is work related.
- Frequent headaches.
- Gut issues, such as pain, constipation, diarrhea, gas, indigestion & nausea.
- Turning to other comforts, such as food, drugs, alcohol or over-exercising, to ease the pain & exhaustion.
- Problems with your vision, such as blurriness, light sensitivity, dry or wet eyes, eye strain, tunnel vision, & twitching.
Why Do You Get Burned Out?
It is often brought on by long term stress, where you for example have a sense of not being able to affect your situation, you don’t feel a purpose with what you’re doing, or you don’t flee like you have any autonomy in your job. It makes it harder to deal with the stress. This can be problems with a coworker, a boss, or a question of having too much to do & not being compensated or recognized for all that you do.If you have previously had problems related to long term stress or illness, your sensitivity to stress can be heightened. Meaning that it’s easier to get burned out if you have already been burned out in the past.What Can Help Burnout?
Working with:- Regular sleeping & eating habits
- Reducing alcohol & drug intake
- Stress management
- Pacing, doing one thing at a time
- Planning breaks during the day Minimizing “multi-tasking”
- Reducing screen time
- Mapping out what takes energy & what you want to put your energy on
- Being clear with your boundaries towards others & yourself
- Saying “NO” to things you don’t have the energy to do
- Being strict about working hours, not working overtime.
- Leaving things undone for tomorrow. You don’t have to finish everything right away.
- Self-Compassion
- Mindfulness
- Meditation
- Yoga, Tai Chi, Qigong
- Breathing exercises
Meds like
Depending on your symptoms & what you need help with, different types of antidepressants &/or sleeping pills can help you manage some of them. Consult with your doctor what’s right for you.Therapies like
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Comment: What’s Your Experience Living With Burnout? Mine is, among other things, being exhausted, zero patience with people, always being angry, cognitive problems & having a hard time finding words. Sources:- Verywellhealth.com psychologytoday.com
- WHO.int
- Forsakringskassan.se
- everyonesocial.com
