How to Treat Workplace Burnout

 

Have you turned on the news lately and heard about the epidemic of burnout? This is a public health crisis that is occurring repeatedly throughout society because of a variety of reasons. Many people experiencing job stress point to the following issues that are causing them pain:

• COVID-19 complications (in themselves or their loved ones)
• Staff shortages
• Demanding or rude customers
• Working too many hours
• Not enough work/life balance
• Organizational level toxicity
• Unclear job expectations and responsibilities

Many feel that they have little or no control over their circumstances at work, and they are being swamped by the factors mentioned above (and others!). Thus, we all need to see what we can do to treat burnout syndrome and try to make sure we don’t fall victim to it ourselves.

What are the Warning Signs of Burnout or Work Related Stress?

Before we can address the mental health aspects of burnout, we must learn to recognize what the signs of of this syndrome. In this way, we can prevent burnout and overcome burnout in ways that we might never have thought were possible.

Early Symptoms of Job Burnout to Look Out For

A few of the signs that one may give off as they are experiencing burnout are blatant and obvious, but that is not the case for all of them. Here are a few of the signs that one’s well being may be at risk:

• Feeling tired all the time
• Emotional exhaustion
• When someone reports that they feel overwhelmed
• Mood swings
• Sleep habits that are knocked off-kilter
• A lack of enthusiasm for their work

Not everyone will experience the same symptoms, and the physical symptoms and health care of each person may manifest in different ways from person to person. Thus, it is important to understand that each person is a unique being, and they are meant to be treated with care and respect.

What Happens When Burnout Continues?

Despite the fact that many of us know that there are dangers to being burned out, not everyone knows what to do when they experience these emotions. They may feel that their physical and mental health has to take a back seat to other concerns. They may even feel that they will be reprimanded for bringing up the stress that they are enduring. Furthermore, persistent feelings of stress can begin to affect home life. That is deeply saddening, and hopefully not too many people experience that feeling for a long period of time.

Impact on Physical and Mental Health

When left to fester, the experience of constant work exhaustion and stress can cause damage to one’s physical health and emotional health. The signs may be very subtle at first, but they will eventually crop up in ways that cannot be ignored. If pushed aside for too long, it is even possible that the sufferer may end up losing the job that they are so desperate to hold onto in the first place.

How Burnout Leaks into Performance

There is no human being alive who can constantly work a job at all times and produce the kind of results that their employer expects of them and that they expect of themselves. If they attempt to perform at a top level for a long period of time despite experiencing severe burnout symptoms, they will very likely see a dropoff in their productivity levels.

Employers start to notice when some of their previous top performers are now struggling to get even the bare minimum amount of work done. Thus, it is very important to make sure you address this issue right away. Job performance cannot be allowed to sag for too long without an employer starting to get seriously concerned about their employees.

Is Treatment Possible?

We have spent a lot of time talking about how dangerous work-related stress can be and how it can start to show up in the way that one performs their job, but we haven’t touched on the fact that there are treatment options open for those who wish to get some help with this. It turns out, there really are options open to those who are facing some struggles at this time.

If you are feeling exhausted and want more control over how you are performing at work and how you are feeling about work related tasks, then you need to know what your options are.

Seek Help from a Mental Health Professional

There is something to be said for reaching out to an expert who has helped others before and knows what to recommend to their clients about how they can start to overcome the issues that they are facing.

When one goes to a mental healthcare professional such as a therapist, they may uncover other underlying mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, or trauma that are independent to their stress and burnout. Therapists help clients hone in on the root causes of these struggles and focus on life skills and self-care to help them feel positive and better themselves.

Sometimes it really is all about getting in to see someone who knows what they are talking about and who has had direct experience helping patients deal with these types of matters in the past.

Building a Support Network

There are many steps that one can take to help themselves build the kind of social support that they need to support themselves through the stress that they are facing.

One of the confusing things about burnout is the fact that many people who experience it feel like they are going through it entirely on their own. They may even blame themselves for the lack of performance at work that they are experiencing. Sadly, they may end up feeling like they are personally responsible for their shortcomings when it comes to the amount of work that they are doing.

To try to avoid this issue, it may be helpful to build supportive relationships of people who are either experiencing this for themselves or who have in the past. Either way, it is a great thing to have people around who can encourage you and remind you that you are not alone in this struggle.

Re-Centering Your Thoughts

Changing the way that you think about stress and burnout that are happening around you can make all of the difference when it comes to how your body responds to those situations. That is to say that you can change the results that you get from the feelings of burnout by altering your thought process to some extent.

There is a lot of power in positive thinking. It cannot be relied upon alone to help you get the kind of results that you may need, but it is something that you can do now and without any cost to yourself.

Speak with Your Supervisors

You may need to let people who you work for know about the struggles that you are facing. It might not be the easiest conversation in the world to have, but it is one worth exploring anyway. When you let them know about some of the burnout and other issues that you are facing, they may be able to recommend solutions and set clear expectations for you or make changes to your schedule or responsibilities to give you a little more breathing room to get things handled. No matter what, the most important thing is to speak with them and see what they can do to help you get these matters settled and put behind you as quickly as possible.

Remember That You Aren’t Alone

Everyone faces burnout in the workplace from time to time, so don’t feel worried if you aren’t able to perform at work in the ways that you used to. If there is one thing that you can take away from all of this, let it be that you aren’t alone in your struggle, and that it is not your fault if things don’t go exactly how you would have wanted them to before. You can take steps to make your situation at work better once you realize what is going on.

If you or a loved one is struggling with burnout in the workplace, look no further. Clear’s Telehealth Therapy Program for burnout is designed to help process all of the issues that one faces in the workplace, provide extra mental health support for struggles outside of work, and teach you the skills necessary to reintegrate back into the workforce with a new sense of vitality. Call us today 866.680.0969 or fill out the form below for more information about our program.