(Science Times)
Jessi Gold, a psychiatrist at Washington University in St. Louis, knows she’s about to burn out when she wakes up and is instantly annoyed with her email inbox and doesn’t want to get out of bed. Perhaps it’s not surprising to her that a mental health professional trying to stem the rising tide of burnout can feel it too at times. After all, the phenomenon has practically become ubiquitous in our culture.
In a 2021 survey of 1,500 American workers, more than half said they felt burnout as a result of the demands of their job, and a staggering 4.3 million Americans left their jobs in December so far known as the “Great Renunciation”. When people think of burnout, mental and emotional symptoms such as a sense of helplessness and cynicism often come to mind. However, wear and tear can also lead to physical symptoms, and experts say it’s wise to watch for the signs and take action when they do occur.
Burnout, by definition, isn’t a medical condition: It’s “a manifestation of chronic, unmitigated stress,” explained Lotte Dyrbye, a physician scientist who studies burnout at the Mayo Clinic. The World Health Organization describes burnout syndrome as an occupational phenomenon characterized by feelings of exhaustion, cynicism, and reduced effectiveness.
“You start to not function as well, you miss deadlines, you get frustrated, maybe you’re irritable with your colleagues,” said Jeanette Bennett, a researcher studying the effects of stress on health at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. .
However, stress can have a wasting effect on the body, especially when it doesn’t ease over time, so it makes sense that it would also cause physical symptoms, Bennett said. When people feel stress, their bodies go through changes that include the production of higher than normal levels of stress hormones, such as cortisol, adrenaline, epinephrine, and norepinephrine. These changes are useful in the short term, they give us the energy to overcome difficult situations, but over time, they begin to damage the body.
Our bodies “were not designed for the kinds of stressors we face today,” said Christina Maslach, a social psychologist at the University of California, Berkeley, who has devoted her career to the study of burnout.
Here’s how to recognize wear and tear on your body and what to do about it.
What to consider
A common symptom of burnout is insomnia, Dyrbye added. When researchers in Italy surveyed frontline health care workers who suffered burnout during the first peak of the pandemic, they found that 55 percent reported difficulty falling asleep, while nearly 40 percent had nightmares.
Research suggests that chronic stress interferes with the complicated neurological and hormonal system that regulates sleep. It’s a vicious cycle, because not sleeping makes this system even more out of control. If you’ve noticed that you can’t sleep at night, that may be a sign that you’re experiencing burnout, Dyrbye said, and your insomnia could exacerbate the problem.
Physical exhaustion is another common sign. Gold said one of his key burnout symptoms was fatigue. “I noticed that she slept every day after work, and I thought, ‘What’s wrong with me?’ But it was really wear and tear,” he said.
To do
If you’re experiencing physical symptoms that could be indicative of burnout, consider seeing your primary care doctor or a mental health professional to determine if they’re caused by stress or stem from other physical conditions, Dyrbye suggested. Don’t ignore symptoms or assume they don’t matter.
“It’s very easy to let go of your own symptoms, especially in our culture where we’re taught to work hard,” Gold explained.
If it’s wear and tear, the best solution is to address the root of the problem. Burnout is often recognized when it’s caused by work, but chronic stress has a variety of causes: financial problems, relationship problems, and caregiving burdens, among others. Think about “the stones that you have in your shoe all the time and have to deal with,” Maslach clarified, and think of ways to remove some of them, at least some of the time. Maybe you can ask your partner to help you more with your child’s bedtime routine, or order takeout when you’re especially busy so you don’t have to plan dinner too.
Despite popular culture’s coverage of the topic, burnout can’t be “fixed” with better self-care, Maslach said; in fact, that idea only makes the problem worse, putting the blame and responsibility on those who experience burnout and implying that they should do more to feel better, which they don’t, he pointed out. However, some lifestyle choices can make burnout less likely. Social support, for example, is helpful, Gold said, such as talking to a therapist or meeting up with friends (even if it’s via Zoom). You should also take advantage of the mental health or physical exercise benefits offered by the company. Getting more sleep also helps, so if you’re experiencing insomnia, talk to a doctor about possible treatments, Bennett suggested.
Finally, even if you don’t want to add more activities to your schedule, try to set aside a little time each day for something you enjoy, Dyrbye added. In his work, he has found that surgeons who set aside time for hobbies and recreational activities—even just fifteen or twenty minutes a day—are less likely to experience burnout than surgeons who don’t.
“You have to have something outside of work that helps you de-stress, focus and relax,” he concluded.