What Exactly is Burnout?
Illustration by Mia Clow
I’ve waited so long to talk about this because I was hearing it so often that I figured…no one needs me to break this down for them. It’s such a common topic right now…I don’t need to add anything to it. But burnout can be confusing and can be hard to identify the roots of it especially when you’re struggling mentally with other things like depression or anxiety. And sometimes when something is such a buzzword like this…we need to know exactly what it means to make sure we’re identifying it correctly,
I write this in the middle of a two week “vacation” from my job. A job I used to enjoy doing, I used to find fulfilling and I finally just got to a point where I needed to totally cut it off for a little while. I needed to remember who I was outside of this job. I needed to remember what I like to do when I have the energy to do it and take the weight of the workplace problems off of my shoulders. I know that I’m not alone in that feeling and that a lot of people are struggling with this in many different capacities.
Burnout is different than just hating your job though. Burnout is different than depression and it’s different from feeling anxious. I actually did a lot of research last year in order to create a presentation to fellow management teams on mental wellness so I was able to learn a little more specifically what the term “burnout” meant. I learned that one of the main things people notice is that feeling of exhaustion and being drained. That feeling of coming home and having nothing left. For me, I’ve often shared that it feels like each day off is just me recovering enough fuel just to drain myself right back to empty all over again. The big thing to remember is that burnout is specifically connected to work - it’s a term specifically representing how you feel in relation to the workplace. So okay great exhaustion is a main indicator but we’re all in a world where we’ve been exhausted from the trauma of a global pandemic that is still going on so how do we know if our exhaustion is from that or our job?
Another strong indicator is that sense of dread. The dread specifically about your work. Not just having trouble getting your day going but specifically struggling mentally with the idea of going to work. And understandably that dread can turn into cynicism, numbness and feeling distanced while you’re at work. Which also understandably can mean a performance drop, because you aren’t motivated, you don’t want to be there, you have separated yourself from it (probably as self preservation) and so you are less invested in the results of your performance. As a perfectionist…that can be really scary and confusing. you’ve got this whole part of your brain that is saying…”I really don’t care anymore. No one cares about me here so what’s the point in trying?” and another part of my brain that’s like “If you don’t handle this situation perfectly you don’t deserve this job. You shouldn’t be here.” So yeah. That’s confusing as heck.
When you take each of those signs individually it doesn’t necessarily mean it is burnout…but I think if you can check of a lot of those boxes and they all seem to revolve around work…then yeah. It’s probably burnout.
So…great. What’s the big solution? A lot of workplaces when trying to deal with their employees’ burnout turn to vacation time. They will suggest taking time off. Which don’t get me wrong…it’s a good idea. But it’s not going to solve all your problems. I read an article about how vacation doesn’t solve burnout like everyone thinks. It’s great and the stress and exhaustion has a chance to fall away, but if everything else in the workplace stays the same when you go back…all those feelings are going to come back. And probably harder and faster.
So what do you do? There is no perfect, one size fits all answer. It’s going to look different for every person and every job. But some of the answers I found most helpful were these:
Sleep
Set firm work boundaries
Change goals (and your expectations) to be more realistic
Re-Evaluate Life Outside of Work
Lean on people when you can
Seek professional counseling or therapy to help identify the cause of your burnout
These are all easier said than done. But they were things that I felt I was in control of and could focus on. When work feels like it’s taking over I have a tendency to try to stretch out my time at home by staying up late into the night so that it feels like there is more life outside of work but I end up tired and irritated and less able to cope with stress and challenges at work, so I had to push myself to just go to sleep and be okay with that.
I felt like the work boundaries and managing expectations went together. There were certain expectation set on managers at my work, for example, to get schedules posted every Tuesday. But sometimes I didn’t have enough hours in the day to get it done because of all the other tasks I was responsible for. So I had a choice - do I work overtime (and not get paid for it) and meet that expectation or do I clock out and say…it gets done when it gets done, and that’s my best right now. When I first got this job I would have worked the overtime because I thought, “it’s just this one time” but at this point it was turning into a regular occurrence that I was having to stay late or work from home (unpaid) to get tasks done. That was hard for me because there was a part of my brain short-circuiting - I had a task and I haven’t completed it to the best of my abilities. But that’s just the thing - it was to the best of my abilities. I had to remind myself that I am doing the best with what I have been given. If they want me meet every expectation, they need to give me the resources to complete them. I need to give myself some grace in that.
On top of those things? Yeah, take your vacation time. I know it’s hard. I know it sucks to use up those hours that you earned and not even be able to go anywhere, but the freedom that I have felt the last few days of just waking up and not having to think about anything work related has been so healing. I don’t know what it’s going to be like when I go back. It could still suck. And maybe it’s time for a change if this job is no longer fulfilling me and I’m not getting any support with it. But it feels so good right now to remember who I am and what I love. Take a good chunk of time too. Don’t take a few days. Take a big chunk of time. Use the first few days to do nothing - don’t make plans. Lie on the couch all day, sleep all day, order in, just exist however you need to exist. Then once you feel like you’re gathering yourself back in again, start exploring things that make you feel whole. For me it’s this - writing and blogging again. It’s making my apartment the way I want it and getting things done I haven’t been able to get done before. It’s singing just for the fun of it. It’s colouring in my colouring books and getting lost in a Netflix series. It might be dancing again or doing yoga again…trying to cook meals again. Who knows? But I finally have the space and energy to do these things. So yeah, take the time off. I know it’s hard to give up the idea of a vacation somewhere far away, but if you feel how I felt at work…you probably need the time to rest anyway.
I hope that was helpful or perhaps you already knew all of that. I know this is such a challenging time and there’s no one answer that will help everyone. Since this is such a hot topic there are a lot of resources on social media - even some great content creators who specialize in this area of counseling so if you are struggling to get on the other side, start looking at some of their content to see if it’s helpful. Take care of yourself. You are so important, even if your workplace doesn’t make you feel that way. You are. I promise.
-B