Despite the grip that burnout has over so many of us, recovery is possible. While there's no quick fix to burnout, there are many ways to alleviate stress levels and return to a healthier state of being.
Burnout will never go away on its own. We're quick to dismiss mental disorders and feelings because they aren't immediately visible like a broken leg might be–but ignoring them can be just as painful. The more you ignore burnout, the greater the risks in the future. Remember: You don't have to get better in a day.
Burnout recovery may take as long as three years: A study of coping: Successful recovery from severe burnout and other reactions to severe work-related stress.
Take time off. If burnout seems inevitable, try to take a complete break from work. Go on vacation, use up your sick days, ask for a temporary leave-of-absence, anything to remove yourself from the situation. Use the time away to recharge your batteries and pursue other methods of recovery.
Can you reverse these changes in the brain once they occur? Studies in mice show it's possible, and a 2018 study in people found cognitive behavioral therapy for burnout reduced the size of the amygdala and returned the prefrontal cortex to pre-stress levels.
How Long Does Burnout Last? It takes an average time of three months to a year to recover from burnout. How long your burnout lasts will depend on your level of emotional exhaustion and physical fatigue, as well as if you experience any relapses or periods of stagnant recovery.
In 2019, the World Health Organization classified burnout as a syndrome that results from chronic workplace stress that's not successfully managed. Burnout is characterized by three symptoms: feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion, negativity or cynicism related your job and reduced professional efficacy.
Physiological Recovery
It might sound silly, but getting enough sleep is the most important step. The research is very clear: seven to eight hours of sleep reverses emotional exhaustion and increases energy levels. Track how much sleep you get on average, and make a plan to increase it to the proper amount.
And once you're “burned out,” you need eight to ten hours of sleep, plus three 15- to 30-minute naps or retreats. Ignore these minimums, and your body will eventually end up lying still anyway – in your bed, a hospital, or the morgue.
Is burnout and stress on your list of good reasons to quit a job? If your job has lost its luster and you feel like the long hours, pressure and anxiety aren't worth it anymore; you're not alone. Every day, people quit their jobs due to the emotional exhaustion and chronic stress of demanding roles.
Burnout causes the prefrontal cortex – the part of the brain that is responsible for cognitive functioning – to thin. This happens normally with ageing but in people who are stressed for prolonged periods of time, it occurs much more rapidly. Parts of the brain that control memory and attention spans are weakened.
Burnout, too, can be a consequence of a trauma. people have different ways of responding to events. If a trauma has such a large influence on us as a person, this can also affect our daily functioning. You find it more difficult to remember things, because you are constantly thinking about the trauma.
How so? According to a new survey, the average worker is experiencing career burnout at the age of 32. I barely had a career to burn out at 32. Nevertheless, a full third of respondents overall claimed they have suffered from burnout.
Stenlund and co-workers showed that around two thirds of clinical burnout patients reported mental fatigue and physical fatigue 3 years after seeking care [13]. Thus, is seems that a subgroup of ED patients experiences long-lasting functional impairments related to fatigue.
"Doctors often prescribe antidepressants straight away, which is problematic," according to Dr Bart Demyttenaere, director of medical policy. "Medication is not the right treatment for burnout. Although the diagnosis and distinction from depression are not always easy to make, burnout requires a different treatment.
What Is Burnout? If you're feeling exhausted and sluggish, and even simple tasks feel overwhelming to complete — or you find yourself so stressed out that you're quick to get angry or frustrated — you might be experiencing burnout.
This feeling has been suggested to stem from fatigue in brain regions that are continuously engaged when the person is performing the same task. Sleeping gives these regions “a break” and a chance to restore their processing capacities.
"It is better to burn out than to fade away". It's a reference to a candle or a fire. Burning out is a metaphor for living an exciting, ambitious life; one where you expend all of your energy early on, possibly even dying young like many rock stars. Fading away would be to simply live safely, not take any risks, etc.