Make Work Work for You

While it is incumbent on us to look after our own health in order to have a happy and productive life, there are some work-related health challenges that are important to be aware of in order to prevent or minimise them and the impact they could potentially have on our ability to make work work for us.

Burnout

Burnout is a state of emotional, physical, mental, spiritual, and relational exhaustion caused by excessive and prolonged stress. We get burnout when we feel overwhelmed, emotionally drained, and unable to meet the constant demands we face.

Global levels of stress and burnout in the workplace have been on the rise for more than a decade, and in 2023 remained at a record high, according to American analytics and advisory company Gallup, which conducts an annual report into the state of the global workplace by polling 116 countries.

I believe that we get burnout, not from doing too much, but from doing too much of the things that are wrong for us.

It is alarmingly apparent in these strange and stressed post-pandemic times that burnout is also a response to having lived through, and to be living in, a time when so much of what was and is happening to and around us is and has been very, very wrong for us. We have all been stretched too often and too far by events in the last few years, and are all at increased risk of burning out.

There are a number of deep-seated reasons why some of us are more vulnerable to developing burnout than others. Those of us who constantly seek approval and affirmation, who judge ourselves without mercy, who struggle to ask for help, who can’t imagine saying ‘no’, and who have the ‘others-centredness’ or ‘rescuer’ genes are very likely to drive ourselves to the point of exhaustion and being completely overwhelmed – and beyond.

Burnout comes calling when we are doing not only too many of the wrong things – the things that drain us and make us stressed, angry and resentful – but also not enough of the right things – the things that feed us, restore us and re-energise us. When we have burnout, we feel as though we have nothing left to give and all of our resilience is gone.

Resilience is often described using an analogy of a rubber band, and its ability to bounce back after being stretched. We all have some level of resilience, and we have all bounced back many times after periods of stress and discomfort. As with all things, however, resilience requires some moderation, because when a rubber band is stretched too often or too far, it either snaps or it loses all its bounce. We’re the same; when we’re stretched (or stretch ourselves) too often, too far or for too long, we’ll break or we’ll lose all our energy and enthusiasm. That, in a nutshell, is burnout.

When we have burnout, we aren’t just physically tired or emotionally delicate. We don’t just feel existentially unsure or question all our life choices. (This is why I recommend that my burnout clients try to recover from their burnout before making any drastic life- or career-changing decisions.) It’s not only that our brains feel mushy and we struggle to remember things. We aren’t merely easily irritated and disappointed. It’s all of these things – and more. Burnout impacts everything. And the more serious the burnout, the greater the impact. Burnout is a systemic condition that affects every element and aspect of our lives – it is by no means confined to work. But if we do not address it, and we allow the exhaustion and state of overwhelm to continue, we may begin to lose the enthusiasm and interest that drew us to our jobs in the first place.

Burnout can turn work that we valued and found rewarding in every way into something that we resent and recoil from – not because the work has changed but because we have run out of energy and enthusiasm to appreciate it and do it well.

Paradoxically, while burnout makes us and our life force feel diminished, it simultaneously amplifies many of our responses. What might have made us slightly irritable before burnout can send us into a white-hot rage while in burnout. Instead of nibbling a square of chocolate after supper, we demolish a whole bar. Instead of feeling a little bit tired after mental or physical exertion, we feel flattened. Things that used to make us feel a little bit sad become devastating.

Tiny sniffles are fast-tracked to bronchitis or pneumonia. A couple of years after I stopped working at the job from hell, I found myself in the surprising – and surprisingly lovely – position of training police officers. From the very beginning, I was acutely aware that the vast majority of the men and women attending the classes would start their days with coffee, caffeinated energy drinks, chocolate or cigarettes – and often a combination of all of those ‘Cs’.

What I suspected then and know definitively now is that they were all in varying stages of burnout. They were beyond exhausted on every level – physical, emotional, mental, spiritual and relational – and were essentially running on the fumes provided by the cortisol-producing fuel they were inhaling. Craving sugar, starchy foods and coffee is always a warning that we’re low on energy reserves and needing to kickstart our bodies with caffeine and carbs – the ‘bad stuff’.

Some of the other, less visible signs of burnout include headaches, sleep disturbances, digestive ailments, anxiety, impaired concentration, social isolation and withdrawal from relationships, and a feeling of ‘what’s the point?’ Burnout is an ‘existential emergency’ because the things that used to feel meaningful and important are no longer rewarding or satisfying.

Burnout starts small but, left unchecked, escalates rapidly and can soon make life feel overwhelming and terrifying. Starting with being in a too-cold environment with horrible pictures on the wall, and moving up to doing work that you are morally and ethically at odds with – and anywhere in between – too much of the wrong thing/s will eventually result in burnout.

When we take on too much, especially too much or too many of the things that make us feel cross, resentful or anxious, we run the risk of developing burnout, not just because we’re awash with negative emotions much of the time, but also because we don’t have the space to do the things that are right for us, and that restore our energy and enthusiasm for life.

Unless we pay attention to the burnout and intervene to reverse it, it will progress, and the symptoms will worsen. The irritability will become anger. Our quality of sleep will deteriorate into insomnia, which in turn will result in heightened anxiety and worsening physical exhaustion. As a way of trying to make ourselves feel better and treat our growing anxiety and discomfort, we may try to self-medicate by consuming more and more alcohol, prescription and non-prescription drugs, and other substances like energy drinks and chocolates, which may make us feel better in the short term but over time only add to our growing distress and dis-ease.

A not surprising consequence of this progression of burnout symptoms is a breakdown of relationships, an increase in chronic illnesses, and – often – depression. As I warn my clients, if we leave burnout untreated, it can result in one or more of the dreaded three ‘Ds’: depression, diabetes and divorce.

Burnout and depression are often mistaken for one another. It’s extremely important to know the difference, as their treatment is very different. Both burnout and depression involve a feeling of tiredness to the point of exhaustion; a feeling of not being able to function normally. It’s the quality of the exhaustion that differs, and it’s a very important difference.

When we have burnout, we’re tired or exhausted by life, whereas when we have depression, we’re tired or exhausted of life. We get burnout when our life and the way we’re living it tires us out, when the choices we make and the actions we take are draining and debilitating. Depression has nothing to do with choices; it’s something that happens to us and, when it does, we start to feel tired of our life and as though we don’t want to be living it any more.

It’s an essential distinction to make because burnout, if caught early enough, can be self-managed and turned around, but depression requires professional help. If you or anyone you know feels tired of life, I urge you to take the necessary steps to get help as quickly as possible. You’re not alone – there are plenty of free and subsidised organisations that offer support to people struggling with depression and other mental health challenges.

Read more in Make Work Work for You: Life Lessons for the World of Work by Judy Klipin. Published by Bookstorm, and available in all good bookstores and as an e-book.