"I feel like I'm just dragging myself to work everyday."
"I lost my purpose."
"It's so hard to get the day started."
"Why can't I concentrate?"
"I just don't feel accomplished or satisfied with work."
"I feel like there's no point to this relentless pace."
"I lost my spark."
"My work has become meaningless."
"Headaches, stomachaches, restlessness...I feel so tense and stressed out."
"I can't sleep thinking about everything I need to do."
"Why did they give me more work? Don't they know I'm overwhelmed?"
"I just don't have fun anymore. "
Job burnout is specific work-related chronic stress that, over time, has become increasingly difficult or seemingly impossible to manage. At its core is profound emotional and physical exhaustion, resulting in feeling deeply dissatisfied, depleted, ineffective and inadequate in your role and, left unchecked, can lead to cynicism and indifference that things can change. Burnout is not a result of weakness, a personality flaw or problems outside of work. Burnout results from an erosion of engagement with one's job, an erosion of one's positive emotions and an issue of 'fit' between the individual and the job.
There are some key indicators that you are experiencing burnout. You may begin to doubt yourself and feel helpless, trapped and defeated. You may lose motivation, feel depressed, anxious, angry, irritable, find yourself increasing your use of alcohol or other drugs, and notice that the excessive stress and fatigue takes the joy out of life. Time spent with family and friends, hobbies and responsibilities and desires outside of work fall on the backburner or just feel burdensome. Burnout takes a toll on your body, too, with chronic fatigue, insomnia, headaches, stomachaches, high blood pressure, changes in eating patterns, muscle tension, ulcers and the development of chronic health conditions far too common. This process is often subtle and insidious, creeping in over time.
"But...how did I get here?" Multiple factors can influence burnout. Here are a few common aspects to consider:
Sources of Burnout
These areas of work-life are known contributors to the development of burnout. It is the chronic, frequent, negative experience of these factors that drive the onset of burnout over time. Our work together will address each relevant area individually as well as explore the totality of its impact on your well-being to produce thoughtful, specific, unique-to-you strategies to overcome burnout and heal.
Workload
Refers to the extent to which demands are manageable.
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Feeling that you do, or do not, have enough time for work that must be done
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Frequently working intensely for prolonged periods of time
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Difficulty leaving work behind when you go home
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Feeling that you do not have enough time for personal interests
Control
Refers to the amount of control you feel in your job.
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Lacking a sense of control over how you do your work (i.e. your schedule, assignments, workload)
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Insufficient/Lacking influence with your leadership team to obtain equipment and space for your work
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Not having autonomy/independence while doing your work and not feeling that you can make decisions affecting your work
Reward
Refers to the effectiveness of rewards and recognition systems.
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Workplace culture doesn't offer recognition for work efforts
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You don't feel appreciated and/or appreciation is not expressed to you (formally or informally)
Community
Refers to the organization’s responsiveness to staff and community.
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Colleagues and team members don't trust one another to fulfill their roles
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Members don't cooperate and communicate with one another
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You don't feel that you are a member of a supportive group at work
Fairness
Refers to the respect and fairness among people in the organization.
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You don't feel that resources are allocated fairly
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Employees aren't treated fairly
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Raises and promotions aren't made based on merit
Values
Refers to personal and organizational values about work.
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You don't believe that your values align with the organization’s values
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You don't sense that the organization is committed to quality
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Your personal career goals don't align with the organization’s stated goals
Therapy for Burnout/Overwork
Can Help
Let's rekindle your zest for life.
Addressing burnout is a necessary but challenging task and is often difficult to tackle on your own. It often takes more than a single vacation or increasing your self-care to feel a true lasting difference. Our work together will help you identify areas of mismatch between your work environment and your core values that led to burnout and then identify sustainable and creative ways to bring back your energy, enjoyment and enthusiasm in your future work.
Together we will work on...
New Perspectives
Some of the most important work comes from learning about the journey that lead you to this place, including your own tendencies and patterns, personality styles and traits and comfort with boundaries and self-advocacy. Together, we will examine how and when these aspects help and hinder you and explore your options to intervene in your current workplace to create more well-being. Our goal is to help you better know yourself so you can make well-informed choices about your future and career.
Coping Skills
Together, we will address the feelings of anger, anxiety, grief, depression, and gloom and the physical expression of feeling "bone tired" and exhausted by creating simple, accessible ways to begin to shift your stuck state to one that is more open, flexible and reflective. Our work will target the stress cycle that keeps you in a loop of overwhelm and help you learn effective ways to rid your body of unwanted, intense emotionality. Our goal is to increase autonomy and control in your life in ways that have a positive, lasting impact.
Feeling Well
Learning how to sustain your progress and growth is vital to the success of our process. Our work together will identify your core values, outline your essential needs and ensure you have a repertoire of resources to help you flourish. Additionally, we will identify your key indicators to monitor for signs of returning stress so you are familiar with your own "traps" that signal the potential return of burnout. Our goal is prevention through knowledge and action so you know what to look for and how to intervene.
Effective, Affirming Therapy for Burnout & Overwork will Help You...
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Understand the impact burnout has had on your mental and physical wellbeing and develop meaningful and practical coping tools and strategies to help you recover from burnout and heal
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Identify your core stressors - both internal and external - and explore creative, accessible ways to address the issues
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Connect with yourself, including highlighting and reinforcing your strengths while exploring your challenges and addressing any patterns, coping styles or habits that sustain your burnout
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Determine your personal set of values and important principles to help guide you with purpose and intention
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Unpack the concept of "work-life balance" and what that means for your unique lifestyle
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Learn how to monitor your stress reactions to prevent the return of burnout
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Heal and recover!