Burnout is something that most of us have either experienced or likely will come to experience at some point. Burnout is essentially exhaustion in every sense of the word: physical, emotional, and mental. Burnout is more than just being tired from a day at work — it’s characterized by consistent feelings of lethargy and demotivation. Despite there being many causes for burnout, people mainly suffer from burnout due to issues with jobs. Although burnout is not a classified medical condition, it’s an important mental health issue that needs to be addressed. Surveys by the APA indicate that more than half of workers (57%) experience burnout and work-related stress.
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What Does Burnout Look Like, and How Does It Affect Us?
Burnout is often accompanied by:
- Continuous and extreme exhaustion, can result in physical pain such as headaches, stomach pain
- Fatigue, overall loss of energy, becoming more prone to sickness, lack of sleep
- Feelings of demotivation, helplessness, and cynicism
While burnout can stem from personal or emotional causes, the main culprit is often work-related stressors. Within the workplace, things such as unfair treatment, overwhelming workloads, and repetitive tasks can contribute to burnout.
Why High Achievers Are More Susceptible
But for high achievers and perfectionists, their susceptibility to burnout is even greater than the average person. Perfectionists are often engaged in their work, striving to perform at the highest level possible, dedicating all their time into reaching that next promotion or salary raise. Yet the truth is, this routine isn’t sustainable. Although having goals and working towards them is an important aspect of fulfillment, everyone has other responsibilities besides work. What often happens with perfectionists, is that they have an initial drive and passion for improvement, but as they continue to dedicate their life into their work, a life-work imbalance develops. This imbalance causes dissatisfaction, stress, and exhaustion — which develops into burnout. As burnout hits these perfectionists, their performance begins to worsen due to demotivation and fatigue, causing them to lose self-confidence as well.
Steps to Combat Burnout
If left unchecked, burnout can spiral into a series of worsening mental health developments. What makes these developments even more potent, is the fact that burnout can often be hard to recognize, as it becomes so ingrained into our daily lives, that these feelings become seemingly normal. That’s why it’s important to take a step back from your own work routine and ask yourself: “Is my job taking away my personal life?” If so, here are some ways to combat burnout:
- Define a purpose: Having a purpose, creating meaning out of your work will vastly increase your motivation to work and decrease burnout
- Take a break: Taking a relaxing break, and taking time to step out of your work routine, will reframe your perception of it entirely. You will begin to see the flaws and the changes that need to be made.
- Make a change: If you are unsatisfied with your work conditions, clearly draw your boundaries, and practice declining unreasonable requests.
- Seek help: Talk to friends or loved ones that have dealt with similar issues, or talk to a therapist that will help you manage your distress.
If you’re ready to talk to a therapist, reach out to us today for a free consultation or visit our anxiety therapy specialty page to learn more details about our approaches and how we can help you.
