Recognising the Signs of Burnout

Burnout is a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion that often results from prolonged stress or overwork. It's a growing concern and a big topic, so this will be a three-part blog, focusing here on the signs and how to recognise burnout, then:

·      Part two – Recover – strategies for individuals and a few tips for the workplace

·      Part three – Relaunch – how to restart and re-engage without burning out again

Personally, I missed the signs of my own burnout (more on that in part 3) so I’m very aware that it can just creep up, and that’s how it is for many of my clients. Sometimes we catch burnout early, and sometimes people are already pretty burnt out when they recognise it and seek help.

Recognising Burnout - What are the signs? How to recognise burnout in yourself and those you live and work with.

Burnout involves a range of impacts and outcomes across three key areas:

Physical:

·       fatigue

·       sleep disturbance (could be any combination of difficulty getting to sleep, frequent waking, waking up not feeling refreshed, or sleeping more than normal)

·       lowered immune system

·       frequent illness

·       appetite change

·       headaches and other aches

Emotional:

·       withdrawal (social withdrawal, less available to family)

·       apathy, loss of interest in activities that you used to enjoy

·       mentally distant

·       cynical (particularly about work)

·       negative

·       feelings of helplessness*

Cognitive:

·       reduced concentration

·       difficulties with memory

·       decision making

·       planning

·       generally reduced capacity

You don’t have to tick everything off the list for it to be burnout. If you have some or many of these symptoms, together with an overall sense of working harder but getting nowhere, and increased levels of stress, anxiety, worry and/or depression, it’s likely time to make some changes.

Track it – Gather some data

A great starting point is to be proactive in tuning into your emotional, physical and mental state. If you notice some of the above burnout signs coming up, or simply recognise you’re feeling a bit ‘off’, start keeping track.

Each day note how you’re going on a scale of 1-10 (one being low & ten being high) and track what you’re most concerned by or interested in. You could track:

·      overall mood or your energy level (where a higher score is good)

·      stress/anxiety levels (where you’re aiming for the score to be low / lowering)

·      anger/frustration (again aiming for the score to be low / lowering)

·      feelings of sadness / helplessness* (aiming for the score to be low / lowering, and see note at the end if suicidal thoughts are present)

Ask the people you’re close to if they’re noticing any changes in you, check in with others on how they’re going, and be aware of signs of potential burnout in them too.

Recognise the source - what causes burnout?

Work is generally recognised as a key factor in burnout (parental/carer burnout is also recognised). In particular, ‘… workload, role ambiguity, role conflict, role stress, stressful events, and work pressure …”[1]

While things like conflict at work, a high stress environment, and high workload may seem like obvious stressors, whether it tips into burnout can also be influenced by:

·       Having unrealistic expectations: Consistently expecting  too much from yourself, feeling you should be able to do it all, having a skewed perception that everybody else is somehow magically doing it all, so you should be able to as well

·       Work-Life Imbalance: Spending too much time on work and/or chores and not enough on personal well-being (this is often where parental / caring burnout can crop up)

·       Lack of Support: Feeling isolated or lacking a support system

·       Perfectionism: Holding yourself to unattainable standards (holding others to unattainable standards can also feed in, given that the actions of others are out of your control)

But I don’t have time to be burnt out!

I will often hear a variation of this; ‘I don’t have time for burnout’, ‘I just need to push through the next month / the rest of this term / to the end of this project’ etc.

However, this is counter-productive, as the symptoms of stress and burnout make it much more difficult to get stuff done, and the longer it goes unchecked, the longer it takes to recover (recovery often takes months, and it’s not unusual for it to take a year or more).  All the while the burnout is having negative impacts on relationships and pretty much all areas of your life, including potential serious and long-term health impacts.

Health Conditions That Can Be Triggered by Burnout

Chronic stress, the kind that leads to burnout, can trigger or worsen various health conditions, including:

·       Chronic Fatigue Syndrome: Burnout can lead to persistent, overwhelming fatigue that doesn’t improve with rest. Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) is characterised by extreme tiredness, muscle pain, and difficulty concentrating, which can severely impact daily life.

·       Heart Disease: Chronic stress from burnout increases the risk of heart-related issues. Stress hormones like cortisol can raise blood pressure, contribute to inflammation in the arteries, and increase the likelihood of heart attacks or strokes.

·       Digestive Problems: The gut is highly sensitive to stress. Burnout can exacerbate conditions like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), ulcers, and acid reflux. Symptoms may include stomach pain, bloating, diarrhoea, or constipation.

·       Mental Health Disorders: Burnout can be a precursor to more serious mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety.

o   The feelings of hopelessness and helplessness that often accompany burnout can evolve into clinical depression if left untreated.

o   Anxiety disorders, including generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) and panic attacks, can also be triggered or worsened by prolonged burnout.

·       Sleep Disorders: Sleep disturbances are both a symptom and a consequence of burnout.

o   Insomnia, where you have trouble falling or staying asleep, is common.

o   Conversely, some people may oversleep but still wake up feeling exhausted, which can be linked to conditions like sleep apnoea.

·       Weakened Immune System: Prolonged stress can weaken the immune system, making you more susceptible to infections and illnesses. You might find yourself catching colds more often or taking longer to recover from them.

·       Muscle Tension and Pain: Burnout can manifest physically through chronic muscle tension, particularly in the neck, shoulders, and back. This tension can lead to headaches, migraines, and even chronic pain conditions like fibromyalgia.

·       Diabetes: Stress can contribute to insulin resistance, which increases the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Burnout-related stress may also lead to poor eating habits, which can exacerbate the risk.

·       Triggering or Worsening Autoimmune Conditions: For those of us predisposed to autoimmune diseases, chronic stress and burnout may act as a trigger for the onset of symptoms.

o   In the case of coeliac disease, stress doesn’t cause the disease itself (which is triggered by gluten in genetically susceptible individuals), but it can exacerbate symptoms or make the disease more difficult to manage.

o   Other autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, or multiple sclerosis can also flare up or worsen under chronic stress conditions.

Conclusion: The Importance of Addressing Burnout Early

• Recognising the health risks associated with burnout underscores the importance of addressing it early. Ignoring burnout can lead to serious, long-term health problems and seriously affect your quality of life.

• Steps to address burnout include self-care, foundational things like sleep, diet and exercise, stress reduction tools and more, all of which I’ll be covering in part two, on recovery from burnout.

• Seek help if you notice any of these burnout symptoms or health issues. For example, contact your workplace EAP (Employee Assistance Program) if you have one, or book an appointment with me or your GP.

*If you’re having thoughts of suicide, first you’re not alone. Many people will have suicidal thoughts at some point in their life and, while they generally pass and you don’t have to act on them, there are also many ways to get support.

·       If you’re having active thoughts, seek help by calling emergency services, or your local Acute Mental Health Care Team (or equivalent depending on where you are).

·       Otherwise, be proactive by talking to close family / partner / friends so they know to look out for you.

·       Lifeline Australia has the well-known phone service (13 11 14) and also an app, Beyond Now, where you can set up your personal safety plan, which starts with recognising your warning signs. 

·       Seek professional help from a registered counsellor or therapist, use your workplace EAP if you have one, and look at other helplines and support groups.

[1] Bakker, A. B., & de Vries, J. D. (2020). Job Demands–Resources theory and self-regulation: new explanations and remedies for job burnout. Anxiety, Stress, & Coping, 34(1), 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1080/10615806.2020.1797695