The term burnout in psychology, coined by Herbert Freudenberger in 1974 has been used in the business world to describe to staff who are disengaged and demotivated in their job role.
Often confused with stress, Burnout is actually the result of unrelenting stress, but it isn’t the same as too much stress. Stress, by and large, involves too much: too many pressures that demand too much of you physically and psychologically. Stressed people can still imagine, though, that if they can just get everything under control, they’ll feel better.
Burnout, on the other hand, means feeling empty, devoid of motivation, and beyond caring.
People experiencing burnout often don’t see any hope of positive change in their situations. If you are experiencing burnout you may experience many of the symptoms of depression.
While you’re usually aware of being under a lot of stress, you don’t always notice burnout when it happens. Occupational burnout is can happen to anyone but is often common in professions which are stressful and emotionally demanding such as social work, nursing, teaching, law, sales & customer service.
If you feel any of the following you may be on the way to burn out.
- Every day is a bad day.
- Caring about your work or home life seems like a total waste of energy.
- You’re exhausted all the time.
- The majority of your day is spent on tasks you find either mind-numbingly dull or overwhelming.
You feel like nothing you do makes a difference or is appreciated.
The negative effects of burnout spill over into every area of life including your home and social life. Because of its many consequences, it’s important to deal with burnout right away. It may be helpful to talk to a therapist about your situation and possible choices.
As stress and burnout may be felt somatically in the body causing long-term changes that make you vulnerable to illnesses a holistic treatment such as Reiki may help to promote a deep sense of relaxation and healing