What is burnout and how does it come about?
All stressful living conditions, often especially professional stress, lead to people feeling burned out and having the feeling that they can no longer go on. Occupational stress is often the main trigger for burnout.
The triggers for this are both excessive and insufficient demands, constant time pressure or problems with colleagues or superiors. Signs of a development towards burnout can be seen when people withdraw from their colleagues, perform poorly, become increasingly depressed and are constantly exhausted or psychosomatic complaints or anxiety to develop.
However, this is not necessarily only observed in adults and only in the professional environment; it can also affect children. In connection with burnout and depression, for example, connections with post-traumatic stress disorders were identified in the examination of children in youth welfare facilities.
Why do people put themselves in such a stressful situation?
People who work too much are often perfectionist and extremely self-confident. However, self-confidence only comes from performance and in order to strengthen and increase self-confidence, it often comes to self-overwhelming. These people have a particularly strong desire for recognition and they usually have problems saying “no”. In many cases, the needs of others are placed above your own.
How does burnout differ from depression?
Burnout is a gradual process that has many facets. Some have been investigated in studies and have been proven, but the indications can vary from person to person and can sometimes only be determined late.
At the beginning, laypeople let themselves be depressed and burned out difficult to distinguish, as both are characterized by extreme exhaustion, depression and reduced performance. Here it is important that a professional diagnosis is made and appropriate therapy is carried out.
What are the first signs of burnout?
There are no clearly defined signs that must always apply at the same time, but of the more than 130 known signs, exhaustion, tiredness, lack of energy and motivation as well as reduced performance are the main ones. In addition, there are concentration problems and sleep disorders.
In most cases, physical complaints also appear very early on, such as frequent colds and muscle tension, but also breathing difficulties, dizziness, headaches and back pain as well as tinnitus and stomach and intestinal complaints. Many of the most common clues can easily be recognized by those affected because they have also been scientifically investigated.
exhaustion
Signs of burnout can mainly be long-lasting states of exhaustion. As the study “Between existential fulfillment of meaning and burnout: an empirical study from an existential analytical perspective” by Anton Nindl, Alfried Längle, Erich Gamsjäger & Joachim Sauer postulated, the person in question longs for a fulfilled life, but only creates a subjective need. The study was based on 105 teachers and showed a clear connection between the lack of meaningfulness and burnout.
Even students who want to achieve a good degree are affected by burnout, as the study “Burnout among students aiming for a bachelor’s degree” by B. Gusy, K. Lohmann & J. Drewes shows. The 1011 students at Freie Universität Berlin showed a high degree of exhaustion in the study, which is one of the symptoms of burnout.
Can no longer switch off
In addition to exhaustion, there is also the feeling of being trapped in a hopeless situation or an unsatisfactory job. Those affected feel worn down by the lack of recognition, cannot switch off properly after work and increasingly only do their work in the “duty according to regulations” mode, while they have already distanced themselves from their job.
The Zurich study by W. Rössler, MP Hengartner, V. Aidacic-Gross & J. Angst revealed a “connection between burnout and personality”. It became clear here that burnout is particularly often localized in “precarious working conditions”.
Forster found in “Stress and Burnout in Bank Managers” that “subjectively perceived stress and the individually available or missing resources for dealing with stress in a healthy manner” increase the risk of developing a burnout syndrome. It is important that employees are supported and that they are recognized and valued at work in order to reduce the risk and frequency of burnout.
Physical signs that people notice for themselves
In addition to the psychological well-being, there are also various physical signs that everyone affected can determine in themselves. For example, the first signs of excessive stress on the body can be seen in various skin diseases such as acne or pimples. Some are also advised by the dentist, who has to prescribe a dental splint for them, as those affected grind heavily at night and the tooth substance breaks down as a result.
Burnout prevention – is that possible?
The best way to differentiate yourself from burnout is when your own needs are perceived and not subordinated to those of others. The constant pressure of having to do everything 100% perfectly can also be reduced.
Through stress management or the definition of clearly defined goals, which are then also approached and pursued, the workload can be better planned and assessed.
Social contacts are also helpfulthat help to change your mind, as well as a healthy lifestyle, which with the right diet and sufficient exercise can help in the fight against burnout.
Therapy – when nothing works
If burnout is diagnosed too late, drug treatments (often with antidepressants) and various psychological therapies (cognitive behavioral therapy, psychotherapy or group therapy) are usually indicated. With timely treatment, the Chances of recovery are good, untreated or undetected, the situation is dangerous, because the symptoms or effects can then lead to permanent incapacity for work.
09/20/2021