What is burnout?
The World Health Organisation (WHO) define burnout as an occupational phenomenon and ‘a syndrome which is conceptualised as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed’.
Burnout can be a gradual process so may be hard to recognise as behaviour and feelings become habitual and unconscious. It affects different people in different ways but tends to present as someone feeling physically and emotionally ‘off’. It generally has 3 elements:
- Energy depletion or exhaustion like you’ve never felt before.
- Increased mental distance from one’s job or feelings of negativism or cynicism.
- Reduced professional efficacy.
Burnout can often happen when an intense workload is being balanced with other personal demands or non-work stresses. Managers may not be aware of the personal issues of their staff and so this can easily go undetected. We shouldn’t forget that managers need support in addressing their stress too.
The end point of burnout can often be numbness or a feeling of being frozen. This manifests as someone not being able to get out of bed one morning as their body has literally taken over and is saying ‘I can’t take this anymore’. It is crucial to recognise that you are experiencing burnout before you get to this stage, so along with the signs that demonstrate stress, mentioned in this blog, it may be useful to ask yourself the following questions to find out if you are experiencing burnout:
- Am I connected to work that’s important to me? Have I got things that I am excited about doing at the weekend, or am I too tired to do anything?
- Am I refreshed after sleep and excited about the day ahead?
- Am I switching off out of work or am I mentally churning over work issues?
- How are the quality of my relationships– am I isolating myself or constantly being irritated by people around me?
- Have I got Sunday night blues that go on for more than a couple of Sundays? (obviously everyone may feel this to a certain extent).
Things to do if you think you are close to/or in burnout:
- Start saying ‘no’ to things that cause you overwhelm and avoid things that don’t contribute to your feelings of purpose and meaning. I acknowledge that this may sound hard to do if you have a habit of people pleasing, but practise your reply to someone asking you something that feels too much, e.g. I’d like to help but I’m going to have to say no as I’ve got so much on at the moment. This will mean that you have a prepared response up you sleeve.
- Get plenty of rest and go on a holiday where you can completely switch off (easier said than done!)
- Contact your GP for advice or HR for guidance and support available at your workplace.
- Identify the sources of your stress and take a good look at everything expected of you each day. Ask yourself if you can eliminate or adjust anything causing you undue pressure (often with the help of colleagues) so that you can stay in work but with a different role or responsibility.
- Contact helpline services such as ‘SHOUT’ Crisis texting service- text the word SHOUT to 85258. You will be able to talk it through with a crisis volunteer and they can help you to think about what steps you can take to rebuild your health.
- Access the support of a therapist who will listen and give you time and space to reflect on everything in your life. Establishing more balance and time for yourself may be crucial.
I hope this blog has helped you. If you have any tips for what has aided you to maintain healthy stress levels or to avoid burnout, please comment below.