Dealing With Burnout

​Burnout is often thought of as working too many hours. But when you think about the energy and mental capacity that’s typically involved with burnout, you quickly realize that it’s not just about spending too many hours on the job. It’s about so much more.

Those with burnout often experience fatigue, lethargy, and depressed feelings. A normally happy, positive, and optimistic person, for example, may start to become grumpier and more cynical. Burnout can also result in getting sick more often.

​Many factors can contribute to burnout. For example, the feeling that you no longer have control over your job and your life is quite common; in fact, that’s a major cause of stress, too.

Something else that those with burnout often experience is a lack of fulfillment. For example, spending most of your waking hours working toward something that doesn’t meet your career goals or fulfill your purpose can wear you down.

Maybe you can relate. Have you ever worked a job that you felt was sucking the life and health out of you? Maybe it paid well, but you hated every second of every day. Maybe you found yourself getting sick, gaining weight, or never doing the things you enjoyed. Maybe you were so drained, you didn’t have any drive or motivation to do anything but sit on the couch and watch TV when you got home.

​So, what is the cure for burnout? Well, believe it or not, nutrition is important. This is because many essential nutrients (e.g., vitamins, minerals, essential amino, and fatty acids) help our bodies create feel-good chemicals that help offset the feelings of burnout.

Social support is paramount, too. And, no, that doesn’t mean having hundreds of friends on Facebook. Rather, it’s the ability to have conversations with others without the fear of losing their love or friendship. Meaningful relationships and connections help increase levels of the hormone oxytocin, which among many things is known as the “antidote to depression.”

Now, if you find yourself in a situation like that mentioned above—where you can’t just up and quit your job—the following things may be helpful.

• Find other duties at your job that you find more fulfilling. Even if it means doing “more” work, if these new responsibilities provide you with feelings of fulfillment and purpose, then it really won’t feel like work.
• Consider spending time outside of work doing things that do make you happy and do provide you with a sense of purpose. Yes, it can be hard to find the motivation to get moving, but contrary to popular belief, action breeds motivation (not the other way around). Simply put, take action…any action will do!
• Try something new. Change your routine. Take a weekend getaway with friends. Try a staycation. Explore your own town.​​

So many people walk around with a meaningless life.
They seem half-asleep, even when they're busy doing things they think are important. This is because they're chasing the wrong things. The way you get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to your community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning.

Mitch Albom, Tuesdays with Morrie