Burnout: warning signs and what to do?

Stress can cause physical, cognitive, emotional and behavioral symptoms. In other words, you can recognize stress from the way you think, your emotions, the way your body feels, and the way you act. You will often detect stress in several areas at once.

For many, it is the physical symptoms of stress that are most familiar. Stress can cause headaches and lead to mysterious back or joint pain. This may cause digestion problems (diarrhea or constipation), nausea and dizziness, slow heart rate, or chest pain. A loss of libido can also be the result of stress.

Stress also presents cognitive symptoms related to the way you think. For example, poor decision-making and losing sight of the bigger picture. Other cognitive symptoms are poor concentration, memory problems (for example, not being able to remember certain words that one normally never has difficulty remembering), getting bogged down in details, brain confused and only focus on the negative side of things. .

There are also emotional symptoms of stress, such as a bad temper and an irritable, agitated disposition toward oneself and others. Other emotional warning signs include mood swings, feeling like you’re constantly playing catch-up, and feelings of loneliness, anxiety, and depression.

Behavioral symptoms of stress include not getting enough sleep (or sleeping too much), eating too much or too little, and withdrawing from others. Some people develop nervous tics like nail biting and scratching, while others are prone to self-isolation. Excessive alcohol and drug abuse or bingeing on Netflix to cut yourself off from the outside world can also be signs of excessive stress.

What warning signs do you recognize? Which one usually comes first and which ones follow next? Think about the last time you felt excessive stress. What warning signs did you notice at that time?

To take part

The next step is knowing how and when to act. This forces you to take a critical look at what you have to do and shed some of your workload when possible.

Easier said than done, of course. It takes a lot of time and courage to intervene when necessary. It forces you to admit to yourself and those around you that you are vulnerable. Sometimes it also means disappointing others. There are people who depend on you and they might suffer when you have to let them down. And then there’s the stigma attached to saying no.

You may inherently expect to be able to do whatever is asked of you. After all, your friends and colleagues are capable of carrying on, so why can’t you? But no matter how difficult it may be to change your workload or how you spend your day, the alternative of doing nothing is much worse.

Start canceling

There is an art to canceling dates without appearing unreliable or offending people. One in which your most important tools are timing and communication.

The sooner you notice that your calendar is full, the easier it will be to cancel or reschedule an appointment. Canceling at the last minute is a sure source of irritation. How you go about canceling an appointment is therefore very important. You need to be able to explain your reasons without sounding like you’re looking for sympathy.

Studies have shown that if you use the word because when you ask someone for something, people are more likely to follow you.

This principle can also apply when canceling an appointment: I just checked my schedule and it looks like I’m going to have to reschedule our Tuesday appointment to a later date because I have to first finish a lot of work for another project. . I prefer to choose another date when I have more time. Does this suit you?

Strictly sticking to your schedule because you feel you have to is a surefire way to end in burnout.

If we want to be able to function effectively in the long term, we have to go easier in the short term. You may even find that others are more willing to accept this than you are.

Your boss at work or those close to you often show great understanding of your situation simply because your well-being is more important to them than your ability to meet their expectations.

Thijs Launspach is a psychologist, TEDX, keynote speaker and author of Crazy Busy: Keeping Sane in a Stressful World.