Darrick Robles The burnout syndrome often occurs due to a persistent stressful situation in the professional or private environment. Patients feel exhausted and overwhelmed in the long term. They are often no longer able to do their jobs. Burnout mainly affects people who work in social professions. However, it can also affect students, housewives and even retirees. Before starting treatment, other psychiatric disorders such as underlying depression should be ruled out.
Definition von Burnout
The word burnout comes from the English and means “to be burned out”. The condition is described as a state of physical and emotional exhaustion lasting weeks to months. There is sometimes disagreement about the term burnout: the disease burnout is not recognized as a somatic or psychiatric disease. While some experts consider the symptoms to be symptoms of depression, others see burnout as a disease in its own right.
Causes of burnout
The complaints often arise due to various stress factors at work or in everyday life outside of work. An increased workload, poor time management, no clearly regulated distribution of tasks and occasional bullying at the workplace play a role here. Burnout can also occur as part of other diseases such as multiple sclerosis, dementia or tumor diseases.
symptoms of burnout
There are a number of different complaints that can occur as part of burnout syndrome. In most cases, patients go through different phases of the disease, each of which manifests itself with different symptoms. At the beginning of the disease, those affected usually practice their profession with a great deal of dedication and great perfectionism. After work, patients have difficulty switching off and are often unaware of their own needs. A vicious circle is created that can lead to the classic burnout symptoms:
- Exhaustion: Patients feel burned out, overwhelmed and emotionally exhausted.
- Decrease in performance: Those affected find it increasingly difficult to concentrate on one thing. In many cases, they no longer feel up to the task.
- Alienation from work: Patients often develop a cynical and distant attitude towards their work. There may also be reduced sympathy and empathy.
- Sleep disorders: Patients find it increasingly difficult to fall asleep in the evening. Patients often wake up early and not well rested. The sleep pattern becomes irregular and the patients cannot recover at night.
- Depressive symptoms: In addition, the feeling of listlessness, inner emptiness and powerlessness can arise.
- Aggressive Symptoms: Patients can often become angry and irritable as their illness progresses. This harbors the potential for conflicts in professional and social contexts.
- Physical complaints: Digestive problems as well as headaches and abdominal pain are observed in connection with the burnout syndrome. In addition, the patients suffer more frequently from infections, and the risk of accidents increases in the course of the disease as a result of a lack of concentration.
diagnosis of burnout
Diagnosing burnout is no easy task. Since there are no clearly defined methods for this, the diagnosis can only be made through specific questions and the patient’s medical history. There are various questionnaires that can help in finding the right diagnosis. It is often difficult to differentiate the disease from other diseases such as depression.
Before starting therapy, other causes of the symptoms should be ruled out. A physical examination and a blood test should be carried out to rule out hypothyroidism, for example, which can also lead to chronic fatigue.
You can do that yourself with burnout
There are some tips that can help treat the condition and help prevent burnout:
- Try to design your work environment according to your needs: Pay attention to good time management and a clear task structure with realistically achievable goals.
- Clearly separate your free time from your job: Flexible working time models can also help to create a better work-life balance.
- Keep a stress diary in which you note your emotions and report on your everyday work. If you are having trouble assessing yourself, you can also ask friends and family for help.
- Try to pay more attention to defined breaks with relaxation phases. Use the breaks to relax in the fresh air, for example. Relaxation techniques such as autogenic training and progressive muscle relaxation can also help.
- Make time for your social contacts. The exchange with friends and acquaintances is an important factor for relaxation and can also play an important role in overcoming the illness.
- Maintain a healthy lifestyle with a balanced diet and regular exercise. Structure your everyday life so that you eat your meals regularly and go to bed at about the same time every day. Avoid consuming alcohol and cigarettes if possible.
Therapy: This is how burnout is treated
There are different approaches in therapy, which are best used in combination.
- Insofar as the exercise of the profession is the cause behind the burnout symptoms, a change in the working environment should be considered. If these steps do not help, you can also consider changing jobs or employers.
- Depending on the symptoms, various medications can help. For example, sleep-inducing drugs can help with sleep disorders and painkillers can be taken for physical complaints. Treatment with drugs should only take place in consultation with the doctor treating you.
- Herbal Medicine: Rhodiola rosea is a natural remedy that has been shown to reduce the symptoms of burnout.
- Psychotherapy: Depending on the cause of the present burnout symptoms, different types of psychotherapy are offered. While the depth psychological methods mainly deal with the reasons for the development of the disease, behavioral therapy approaches focus on learning a health-promoting behavior.
- Group therapy: Many patients find it helpful to share their own problems with others who are affected. In so-called self-help groups, a protective space can also be found in which patients can meet understanding fellow sufferers.
- Art therapy: Music therapy approaches in particular can be used to treat burnout symptoms.
- Physiotherapy: Massages, stretching exercises and guided endurance training can help the patient to cope with the stress-related illness.
When to seek help
If you feel like you can’t handle the stress anymore, you should seek help. The sooner you seek professional help, the easier it is to treat the diagnosis. The chances of recovery are the better, the earlier the therapy begins. If left untreated, the disease can sometimes lead to permanent disability.
How can Med-Healths help?
Do you always feel exhausted and overwhelmed with coping with your everyday life? You can reach a doctor who can treat you via the Med-Healths app. Tell him about your complaints and let him help you. He will answer your questions about burnout and show you and explain treatment options. The video consultation gives the opportunity to be referred to the right specialist for further treatment. In addition, the doctor can use the app to certify that you are unable to work and prescribe medication if necessary.
