You can overcome burnout

Introduction

Are you concerned that you might be experiencing burnout? Take a look at this article which explores how to spot the five stages of burnout with tips on how to overcome it at each stage.

What is burnout?

Burnout is identified as an occupational phenomenon that develops after persistent periods of workplace stress. The World Health Organisation state that it is characterised by feelings of depletion or exhaustion, reduced professional efficacy, and negative feelings towards your work role.

It can have such an impact on our daily lives so understanding how to identify it will really help to overcome burnout.

The term was coined by Herbert Freudenberger, a psychologist. He initially focused on the consequences of severe stress for those in “helping” professions by identifying 12 stages of burnout. This was later distilled down to five stages which we will look together later in the article.

Woman feeling burned out burnout burned out

Causes of burnout

Various aspects can cause burnout. One example is that if you work in a place where there is a negative culture towards wellbeing. It can therefore feel difficult to switch off. An example of where this may be the case is if you work somewhere where it feels there is a quiet expectation that you should work through your lunch break rather than getting away from your desk.

Equally, it might be that your manager regularly contacts you outside of your working hours. This might be when you are on your way to the office or after you have arrived home. These kinds of circumstances can make it difficult for you to have a clear separation between work and other aspects of your life.

Another cause can be if you have beliefs that you need to exceed your employer’s expectations. If this is the case, it may mean that you struggle to switch off after work due to worries that your managers believe you are not working to an adequate standard. If you are pushing yourself due to underlying worries, take a look at another one of my articles for some helpful tips on coping with anxiety.

Reasons it may be hard to switch off

If you struggle to switch off because of your worries, this may be for several reasons. Perhaps in your earlier years, you were told that you would have to work twice as hard as your peers to get half as far.

It may be that you grew up in an environment where the value of an individual was very much linked to their achievements. You may also have been told that you would never amount to anyone or that you are not good enough. All of these examples can mean that you end up driving yourself really hard at work to the point of exhaustion.

How to spot and overcome burnout

The five stages of burnout

• The Honeymoon Phase

• Onset of Stress

• Chronic Stress

• Burnout

• Habitual Burnout

The Honeymoon Phase

This phase links specifically to starting a new role or project. You will likely feel optimistic, be brimming with ideas and feel generally positive about your role and the organisation you work for. If you run a business, this may be the point where you have lots of ideas and a clear vision that you are working towards. At this stage you will not need to overcome burnout but you can do things to look after your wellbeing in order to prevent it.

Looking after your wellbeing at this stage is key.

This is the stage where you will likely have a lot of energy, emotionally and physically. It is therefore easy to overwork when you are in the Honeymoon phase. If you are here at the moment, that is fantastic. You can do many things while in this stage to look after your wellbeing. These include:

• Have a think about how you will notice that you are starting to struggle with your workload. Make a list and keep it somewhere that you can review it periodically.

• Take regular breaks. Working for six or eight hours straight is counterproductive. You are unlikely to be able to work efficiently for this period of time. Instead, try working for fifty minutes with a ten-minute break every hour. You might be surprised how much more you get done! On your breaks, do something completely unrelated, especially if you have been sitting in front of a screen.

• Set goals for yourself and incorporate looking after your wellbeing and taking time out into these goals. Take a look at my article on goal setting if you need help with this.

Onset of Stress

This is where you may notice early signs of stress, including headaches, stomach problems, a change in libido, feeling overwhelmed and noticing a drop in motivation. Perhaps you start saying no to meeting with friends or that you are more irritable with those around you. You can find further information on the signs of stress here.

You may also find that you start to notice that you are feeling anxious or struggling with your sleep. If this is the case, take a look at my articles on managing anxiety and improving your sleep for helpful pointers.

Looking after your wellbeing at this stage

These are the early warning signs that things are becoming more difficult. The following tips may help you to overcome burnout at this stage.

• Whatever else is happening during the day, be sure to take your lunch break. Take that time to go for a walk, even just around the block or around the office. You will notice that a change of environment will help you to decompress.

• Arrange to meet with a friend, even though you do not feel in the mood to do this. You don’t have to talk about the stress you feel if you prefer not to. Sometimes doing something completely unrelated can help.

Chronic Stress

It is common to go through stress at work for various reasons. There might be a specific target or project that requires extra time for a short period. If, however, you find that you are in a constant state of stress at work, this is when the symptoms can become chronic.

As a result of feeling this stress, you may find that a few days of poor sleep turn into insomnia. You may also notice an intensification of the symptoms you noticed at the onset. At this point, you may withdraw from social interactions significantly due to the feeling that you don’t have the energy to be around others.

These easy pointers will help you to overcome burnout at this stage:

You may find that you are at the point where you don’t feel that you can leave your desk for 30 minutes to an hour. The following tips might help you here:

• Break your lunch break up into smaller sections. If you have 30 minutes, break this up into 5 or 10-minute segments throughout the day. This will be just enough time to take a step back from whatever activity you were doing. This will then help you be more precise about whatever you have on your schedule.

• Look at prioritising your work. Consider whether all of the tasks on your list need to be done urgently. If not, consider what you can move off your list or at least down the priority list. You can use the diagram below to prioritise your work.

Tips to help you to prioritise tasks. The Eisenhower Matrix. — Adapted from the Eisenhower Matrix

Burnout

This stage comes after being in a persistent state of chronic stress. You will feel less optimistic about work. You will likely worry about what others think of you to a greater extent than you did before.

If you get to this stage, you may think back and notice that things have been this way for a while. You will likely feel the complete opposite of how you did during The Honeymoon Stage. You will probably find that your relationships are being impacted. You will likely also have a more pessimistic view of the future.

This might be the point that you book an appointment with your doctor due to chronic headaches and perhaps irritable bowel syndrome. You will also be finding it more challenging to make decisions due to increased levels of self-doubt.

Looking after your wellbeing at this stage

• Allocate worry time – one of the worst things you can do when worrying about something is to try to push those thoughts out of your mind.

Take a look at my article on five tips to manage anxiety. The second tip focuses on a method to use to identify specific times in the day to worry. It sounds counterproductive, doesn’t it? However, it means that you can postpone your worries and therefore focus elsewhere when you are outside of those allocated times.

This is a very effective method for coping when you are starting to feel out of control.

Habitual Burnout

At this point, the symptoms described above will feel like they have become a part of who you are. It will be challenging to differentiate between the aspects that are part of your personality and the elements that are due to the ongoing stress you are experiencing linked to your work.

You may note that you have been feeling depressed for an extended period of time. Take a look at my article here to assess whether you are depressed.

This is the stage you will find the most challenging, you may need to be signed off work due to stress. If you are still at work, you must take small incremental steps to address your feelings.

Looking after your wellbeing at this stage

• Maintain work free spaces. If you work from home and have an office, shut your office door when you have finished work and don’t enter the room again until the next workday. If you work from another space where you live, close down your laptop and all work items and put them in your wardrobe, under your bed or any other place where they are entirely out of reach.

• If you have not already managed to do this, delegate some tasks or ask for help.

• If all of this feels too much, it might be time to seek some professional help. Feel free to get in touch for a free 15-minute consultation to discuss how therapy may help you.