What is burnout?
When you are suffering from a burnout, you are literally completely burned out. It is an exhaustion reaction to a long period of mainly work-related stress, which is felt mentally, physically and emotionally. With burnout, however, in my opinion, there is more at play than being completely exhausted by lingering stress over the long term.
I usually see that people are no longer connected to themselves, no longer know what makes them happy, who they are in essence and where they want to go. This is something I find crucial in burnout and I am happy to assist you in this so you don't have to do this alone.
Causes of burnout
Stress
Burnout is caused by prolonged exposure to too much stress. In practice, we often see that this stress manifests itself both at work and on a personal level.
Disturbed energy balance
More energy flows away into commitments and problems than you are left with energy from the things you enjoy. You can no longer recharge and your balance becomes negative.
Personality
Personality traits such as excessive dutifulness, perfectionism and workaholism are major risk factors.
The risk of burnout is also higher for sensitive personalities with a high sense of responsibility.
Out of touch with yourself
You have lost touch with yourself, no longer know who you really are and what makes you genuinely happy.
You get somewhat off track with your authentic passions and motivations.
Burnout symptoms
Burnout develops very gradually.
The most common definition of burnout involves the following 3 components:
- Exhaustion/extreme fatigue.
- Cynicism: alienation from work and others, becoming indifferent
- Feelings of reduced personal competence
Physical symptoms
- persistent fatigue
- insomnia
- gastrointestinal complaints
- palpitations
- dizziness
Psychological symptoms
- inability to settle down
- increased irritability
- crying and brooding
- forgetfulness
- anxiety
- avoiding social contacts
