What Are the Signs of Burnout at Work?

It’s a Monday morning and you force yourself to go to work. You somehow finish work for the day despite feeling irritated in the hope of finding motivation tomorrow. But the entire week goes by with no significant improvement. And even the thought of a weekend doesn’t bring you the joy you were hoping for.

Have you experienced something like this? Then these can be the signs of burnout at work!

Feeling stressed isn’t uncommon for people on jobs. But you need to understand the difference between stress vs burnout to manage the problem.

You feel stressed due to a temporary issue. Burnout, on the other hand, happens due to prolonged stress. It’s a state of physical and emotional exhaustion where you may lack the energy to go about your day.

Critical Signs of Work Burnout

Do you suspect you are experiencing burnout due to your busy work life? Then here are a few prominent symptoms of burnout that can help you identify the problem:

Feeling Exhausted

When it comes to burnout, you may lack the energy to do anything – whether it’s related to your job or personal life. No matter how much or how less sleep you get, the feeling of exhaustion may not go away. Extreme tiredness and feeling low are other common side effects.

This can affect your sleep quality and pattern too. Some people start sleeping more than usual while others tend to get insomniac.

Frustration

You may sometimes get angry when things go wrong. For example, a subordinate fails to do their job right despite explaining them several times. Or someone damages your personal valuable items that are close to your heart.

But due to burnout, you may feel overly irritated and get frustrated at small matters.

You may get angry at people you are close to and generally don’t get angry with them. If that’s the case, it’s crucial to address the problem.

Lack of Interest

Losing interest in your job can be among the potential signs of burnout at work.

If you are satisfied with your job, you’d feel motivated to finish tasks at the earliest. You would give your best performance and be happy with the results. But with burnout, you lose the motivation to be a high-performer. So, you may refuse to take on projects and instead, do the bare minimum.

Difficulty Focusing on Work-Related Tasks

Among the signs of work burnout, lack of focus or attention is an important one.

The best employees can become forgetful at work due to this problem. You may find it challenging to remember simple things or stay focused on your job. Also, you may have difficulty with making decisions or solving problems.

Burnout tends to affect your self-esteem. So, it’s likely you may get overwhelmed by simple tasks or requests. You may think you lack the skills to do the job. As a result, you may struggle to work on tasks that you used to be good at otherwise.

Increased Procrastination

Procrastination refers to the action of putting off tasks even if they are urgent.

At times, you may ignore a few tasks on your to-do list. Then you would hurry to finish them before the deadline. When you actively do it to manage productivity, this is called Active Procrastination. But unnecessary delaying tasks is called Passive Procrastination which doesn’t work in your favor.

If you notice yourself avoiding more and more projects because you’re feeling overwhelmed, then it can be one of the burnout signs. This pushes you into a situation where too much work piles up that you can’t finish.

Physical Burnout Symptoms

Burnout due to excessive workload can tamper with your physical and mental health. If you start experiencing the following symptoms, you might be experiencing burnout:

• Muscular pain and stiffness
• Frequent headaches
• Bowel issues and stomachache
• Lack of energy
• Trouble falling asleep
• Low immunity – You may get sick more often
• You may seek comfort in junk food or alcohol

Aside from physical symptoms, you may experience mental health problems too. For instance, you may develop depression and adopt a pessimistic point of view due to burnout at work.

Effects of Burnout on Your Everyday Life

The effects of burnout extend far beyond the workplace. They can seep into your daily life and affect your personal life as well.

Health Issues

Burnout tends to take a toll on your physical health. By weakening your immune system, it leaves you vulnerable to catching illnesses such as flu. Due to extended exposure to stress, some people develop serious health issues including cardiovascular diseases and gastrointestinal issues.

Further, this can ruin your sleep and reduce sleep quality. You may struggle to sleep even when you’re tired.

Mental Exhaustion

Aside from your physical health, work burnout also puts your mental health at risk.

It mentally and emotionally drains you. As a result, you may constantly feel overwhelmed and sad. Due to low emotional resilience, you may struggle to cope with everyday challenges. Also, it will leave you irritated and you may not be able to keep a positive mindset.

Low Productivity

Work-induced burnout directly affects your productivity.

When you’re exhausted, you can’t expect your mind to fully focus on the tasks at hand. You would struggle to pay attention and find the best solutions to solve problems. So, your performance may decrease when you are stressed for a prolonged period.

Strained Personal Relationships

The impacts of burnout aren’t limited to your professional life. It can affect your personal life and relationships too.

When you’re in a constant bad mood, everything around you makes you angry. Your patience level drops. You may get irritated at small matters and get into arguments with your loved ones.

Or you may prefer to isolate yourself and avoid social gatherings and activities that used to make you happy.

Loss of Interest in Hobbies

Burnout negatively affects your sense of pleasure. Thus, you may lose interest in the hobbies you once loved. With the struggle to deal with your professional responsibilities despite the stress, your hobbies and passion may take the back seat. And when you disconnect from your passion, you may experience emptiness which makes you unhappy.

How to Address Burnout at Work

Addressing burnout needs a well-structured approach to regain control of your life. Here’s what you can do to restore your health and find a balance:

Recognize the Signs of Burnout at Work

First and foremost, you need to acknowledge that you’re experiencing burnout symptoms. For this purpose, pay attention to your physical and mental health. Accepting that there’s a problem will help you take the right course of action to address burnout.

Communicate with Your Managers

Communicating your problem with direct supervisors can help you find a solution.

When you are overworked, you can discuss appropriate changes to your schedule or workload. Managing unrealistic expectations and adjusting your goals can help address the root cause of the problem. Additionally, you can discuss a vacation or a break to get relaxed so you can better focus on your job.

Pay Attention to Your Health

You need to prioritize self-care to improve your health and build resilience.

So, incorporate the following tips in your everyday life to improve your physical, mental, and emotional health:

• Try to get 8 hours of sleep every night
• Don’t skip meals
• Take a nutritious diet
• Stay hydrated
• Try physical exercise and meditation
• Spend time with your loved ones
• Make some time for your hobbies

Seek Professional Help

No matter how strong you are, you may sometimes experience situations that are beyond your control. So, don’t hesitate to ask for help when you’re struggling.

Your trusted people can support you when it gets tough. But you need professional help to find an effective solution to burnout. A professional therapist can help you identify the causes of burnout. And they can help you explore strategies to cope with the problem.

Conclusion

Identifying the signs of burnout at work during the early stages is critical. Otherwise, the symptoms tend to snowball into a condition that is often beyond your control.

So, look out for signs such as prolonged stress, changes in sleep patterns, low productivity, and constant bad mood. Burnout can affect not only your professional life but also lead to strained personal relationships and problems in your personal life. Therefore, you need a proactive approach to address the problem.

It’s best to accept the problem and think of potential solutions. You can discuss the problem with your supervisors to find a balance with your workload. Additionally, consulting a therapist can also help you identify and adopt coping strategies.