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It’s not uncommon for all of us to hear at least one person complain
about stress burnout everyday. We live in times that demand more and
more of us, but don’t seem to provide rewards which we feel good about.
I frequently hear of persons working two or three jobs, just to maintain
the lifestyle they had ten years ago. And of course there are those
that live far beyond their means and get into financial and emotional
trouble.
This article isn’t going to talk about how a person gets to the point
of stress burnout. My intent is simply to provide you with a few
warning signs of stress and possibly burnout. We rarely hear a good
explanation of this common malady. What I would like to impress upon
you is that burnout doesn’t occur without stress. Burnout is defined as
an emotional state where a person feels out of control of their life.
As my father so aptly put it, “they have started letting the job run
them instead of them running the job”. You can substitute any word,
such as family, marriage, boyfriend, girlfriend, or virtually any noun
in the place of the word job. When a person lets the stress of one of
these relationships build to a breaking point, then burnout usually
follows. So, now lets take a look at a few warning signs of stress and
burnout.
Frequent headaches, muscle aches and pains for no apparent reason.
These may only occur at work or in the stressful situation. Problems
with digestion, constipation, diarrhea, sleepiness, or even difficulty
sleeping. Feeling that you’re emotionally and physically exhausted.
You may find yourself in that rat race working longer hours just to keep
up. When you reach this point, you’ll actually feel guilty about
resting, taking time off, or enjoying entertainment, sports, or
hobbies. Becoming upset or irritable around others. You get angry
easily even over small insignificant things. You may even start to
blame others for your feelings. You can’t concentrate sufficiently to
complete tasks, much less start new ones or take on additional
responsibility. Remember the straw that broke the camel’s back? You
may feel you are helpless and have loss control of the situation. This
may lead to negative thoughts and sarcasm about your work or other
important relationship.
By this time, most persons will start having recurring thoughts of
quitting work, ending the marriage, moving to a new town, or even away
to a tropical island to take up oil painting.
I’m sure by now you’re saying this sounds like depression. Well,
stress burnout is indeed a form of depression. Most affected persons do
feel blue and sad at times. What separates the two syndromes is really
just a matter of how far one lets the stress proceed. In our next
article, we’ll deal with methods to help avoid stress burnout and that
looming case of depression.
Happy days are here again……...
Dr. Frank |
