What is burnout and how can you deal with it?

The World Health Organization (WHO) describes burnout as an occupational phenomenon, meaning a situation that exists and is related to a job or profession, and emerges as a response to workplace stress over a long period of time.

Symptoms for burnout are characterised by the WHO by three factors; feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion, increased mental distance from your job/ feeling negative and cynical towards your job and a reduction in your efficacy in work.

The difference between stress and burnout is that when we are feeling stressed, we feel like we have too much of a demand on our body and mental wellbeing. When we are burnt-out, we are feeling mentally and physically exhausted and simply do not care or have any motivation. Stress can feel like ‘drowning’ whereas burnout can feel like we are all dried up.

How can you deal with burnout?

To deal with burnout we must consider the three R approach:

Recognise: Being able to see the warning signs of burnout

Reverse-: We need to reverse the damage by seeking support and managing our stress

Resilience: By taking care of our physical and emotional health we are able to build up a resilience to burnout.

It is important to reframe your approach to work and your priorities, as well as increasing the communication you have with other people and managing who you communicate with. For example turning to co-workers, friends or family members. It may also be beneficial to limit contact with stressors.

If you would prefer to speak to someone with professional experience, we have a team of highly-qualified therapists who can help you to understand and manage symptoms of stress and burnout.

All of our therapies are available at our clinics in York, Manchester and online.

If you would like to find out more please get in touch by using the form below, or emailing york@theretreatclinics.org.uk or manchester@theretreatclinics.org.uk.