In todays hectic life full of targets and high standards we set big goals and work hard to achieve them. It’s the norm of society to think big and achieve big. Many people are working round the clock to make their dreams a reality. The hours of the clock just pass by like minutes. Lot’s of unfinished work, conflicting expectations, pressures and sleepless nights are the natural consequences of burning the candle at both ends. Hence it’s no surprise that many people are experiencing a burnout.
A little stress is good as it helps the body and mind to stretch it’s capacity and improve efficiency but only for short periods of time. If the duration is stretch over weeks and months it can have disastrous consequences on our physical, mental and emotional health. Most people are so caught in the flow of work that they don’t realize that they are already in the burnout zone. Knowing the early and middle stages of a burnout can help you diffuse the burnout before disastrous consequences set in.
Here are a few signs that can let you know that you are facing a burnout and enable you to take remedial measures to safeguard your wellbeing.
Occasional or frequent Headaches that occur during work or any time of the day. A feeling of heaviness or dullness in the head. These headaches reduce with rest, closing the eyes or sitting in a dark quite place. Taking a cup of coffee or tea provides a temporary relief. Just taking some time out helps then it’s a burnout headache for sure.
People experiencing a burnout feel negative about trivial unmet expectations or whenever something does not go according to plan. They become overly critical about the situation or about the people surrounding them and begin to imagine a doomsday scenario. In simple words they tend to exaggerate the negative situations of daily life.
With excessive work, little rest and no time to recharge people experiencing the burnout feel extremely tired and exhausted. They find it difficult to shut their minds. The mind is racing due to the thoughts of the incomplete work and the pile up of files on the table. Even as they lie on the bed they find it hard to sleep. Their sleep pattern gets affected and some times they even suffer from insomnia or sleeplessness. They stay up all night haunted by the work still awaiting them.
Mood changes like Irritability, mood swings, depression, sadness, negative feelings occur due to prolonged periods of stress. Slight changes in the emotional environment around such people can unleash an exaggerated, out of proportion reaction. A boss experiencing a burnout due to an approaching deadline is spitting fire all around at his subordinates and associates. Any person responsible for slowing the pace of the work will have to face his wrath.
Eventually with all the physical mental and emotional machines of the body working at full throttle the system or individual organs of the body finally break down and the person becomes sick due to the collapse of the immunity system or due to the severe load on the various organs. Becoming physically ill is the outcome of the degree of load on the various organs and the overworking without any rest or time to recover. Emotional problems begin to surface and the general wellbeing is compromised.
During periods of extended stress or in the burnout phase one experiences a feeling of Endless anxiety as one feels that there is just no time to slowdown and relax. The shifting from one task to another rapidly, without a break and no downtime causes emotional overload. people a feeling of hopelessness and excessive anxiety. One begins to feel numb or apathetic about life. In this phase it becomes hard for the person to experience positive emotions like happiness or joy. He is just not able to react or perceive these positive feelings. Life feels like a downward slope and he is racing down the slope constantly hitting new lows.
Due to a continuous stream of work one begins to neglect himself and focus on the uncompleted task thereby not caring for his physical, mental and emotional needs. He tends to neglect selfcare, the very foundation for his ability to work efficiently. If only people pay attention to selfcare they can reduce the negative impact of a burnout or even avoid a burnout.
The long term effects of a burnout are very disastrous on the general wellbeing and health of a individual and could cause permanent damage emotionally, mentally and physically. When one experiences a burnout over extended periods of time the changes in the body could become fixed and irreversible.
Hence it’s very important to know and recognize the early signs of a burnout and take preventive and remedial measures for the same.
Counselling, homoeopathy, self education by reading books on the topic of stress could help prevent a breakdown or burnout.
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If you or a loved one is facing a burnout you could get in touch with us by filling the form below. We would be glad to be of assistance
Dr. Alfred D'Silva 
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