Burnout
Recovering From Overwhelm and Burnout
Overwhelm and Burnout: Some background
Overwhelm can be, and starts with, genuine external challenges that, over time, we realise are stretching our capabilities beyond healthy limits. This is a genuine external stress repeated so often that our exhaustion and anxiety grow to unsustainable levels. How we each react to stress varies widely from person to person.
When this experience of stress is repeated again and again then we can get into an extended period of anxiety leading to chronic conditions of burnout including apathy, anxiety, rage, mental-numbness, depression, loss of resilience, sensitivity, and so on.
Part of this process is emotional overload and part is the building up of a cognitive belief that becomes habituated such as "I can't take it any more!", "I have to work harder!".
Although the original pressure may have passed, the core beliefs can remain unchallenged and possibly unnoticed. The burnout can be characterised as a lack of resilience and a loss of enthusiasm and optimism.
This process can act in a similar way to chronic fear (PTSD) but the underlying emotion is anxiety rather than fear.
With appropriate support, core beliefs can be managed. Resilience, confidence, enthusiasm, optimism, etc. can be rebuilt.
Overwhelm and Burnout: Some cognitive interventions
Challenge "I can't cope": Change to "I believed that I couldn't cope at that time and now I can rebuild my strength and resilience."
Reassert/affirm: For example, "I am increasingly confident, resilient, enthusiastic, able to cope, and determined."
Recognise: Life can deliver challenges that may be beyond our normal ability to resolve in the ways that we demand of ourselves and that we can employ 'Plan-B' to cope and survive.
Apathy:
Apathy may be characterised as an "I don't care" attitude.
But... "I don't care" is basically a belief or proposition, although we may take it as a feeling.
"I don't care" may really mean that we are not able to connect with our enthusiasm, nor other positive feelings, in relation to the prospect or situation that we are considering.
If we address "I don't care" as a belief rather than a valid assessment of our feelings then we may be able to reconsider our apathy and begin to build genuine and healthy feelings, or at least connect with our determination.