Stress vs. Burnout

            Sometimes people get confused about what is stress and what is burnout.  The two are often used interchangeably.  Actually, burnout is a special sub-category of extreme and usually prolonged distress.  Normal stress occurs any time that we do something with a degree of difficulty.  Distress happens when the demands in the situation exceed an individual’s resources to cope.  A person who cannot cope with criticism and working in a critical environment will be distressed.  A second person in the same workplace may have learned to cope with criticism and not be distressed.   Smaller stresses can accumulate and become distress that can cause emotional or physical damage.  Stress, before it reaches the level of distress, is motivational.  The motivation is to solve the problems causing the stress.  Distress can overload one’s system and interfere with problem solving.

            All of us are not subject to the condition of burnout.  Those at risk for burnout have (1) high standards for their personal performance.  The standards may be unrealistically high and impossible to achieve or the performance may occur in an inefficient system that blocks achievement.  This system may include (2) responsibility without control, (3) pressured work with little relief (deadlines), (4. accumulation of distress, or (5) no support from peers (6). conflicting demands by partners, coworkers or clients. 

            Early in the burned-out’s career he or she struggles to meet high standards from personal and unrealistic expectations or in a system that defeats success. The person may notice working more and more and accomplishing less.  The result is exhaustion, irritability, and a loss of immunity to illness.  There is less time for family and friends.  A sense of isolation develops and a suspiciousness toward others. The strugglers begin to feel powerless and hopeless about achieving their goals.  The continual feeling of loss results in depression.  Blame affords temporary relief, blaming the family, the legal system, those who are different, etc.  The blame may be accurate but does not lead to a solution.  At this point, he or she discovers a second means of partial relief.  Perhaps upon awakening one morning he or she might have a thought, “I don’t give a damn anymore.  I’ll go to work every day but I’m not going to bust my rear to do the impossible.  I just don’t care.”  That’s burnout!  In order to recover the burned out person must care again which causes a return to the old stress.

HOMEWORK

If you judge yourself as stressed or burned out (or depressed) you made need professional help.  Still, you can help your self by building a social support system, on the job and away from it.  Particularly, burned out, stressed, and depressed persons tend to isolate.