I survived my kidnapping by the Abu Sayyaf 20 years ago unscathed. A few years later, I still ended up burning out. What heavily armed rebels couldn't do, my job at the time actually managed to do: it brought me to my knees. Don't get me wrong, I don't want to trivialize the seriousness of the death threats and the emotional strain during the kidnapping. And yet it's amazing: escaping death and failing to meet „deadlines“ that weren't really fatal?
In order to understand this, I embarked on an intensive search for clues. And learned a lot in the process - including about the phenomenon of burnout.
The widespread disease burn-out
Burnout is just the final stage of a creeping crisis. It does not happen overnight, but is a reaction to constant stress and excessive demands, usually in the workplace. Important cornerstones of the definition of burnout syndrome according to the World Health Organization are
- the feeling of being burnt out,
- an inner distance from the workplace, often combined with a negative attitude towards one's own job or cynicism, and
- low professional performance.
This definition will come into force in 2022 with the revised ICD-11, the globally recognized classification system for medical diagnoses. Until now, burnout syndrome has played a subordinate role in medical classification, although it is considered a widespread disease. However, it is not considered a disease, but a »factor influencing health«. For example, it is a risk factor for depression.
Note: If you find yourself in a highly stressful situation or even notice signs of burnout, I strongly advise you to speak to a specialist, e.g. your doctor or therapist.
Leave it, love it, or change it!
In general, it is of course advisable to avoid burnout in the first place, even in stressful situations. But how can this be achieved?
A first step is certainly to look at the situation itself. It helps to become aware of your own options for action. This strengthens our inner attitude and our own awareness: we become active creators instead of passively remaining in the role of victim. In my experience, we have three options for action in (almost) every situation:
- Leave it: Do I want to leave the situation? How could I actually do that? What would the legal, social and financial consequences be? Is there an alternative? How quickly could I reorient myself? What would be the best time to leave my situation?
- Love it: Can I learn to love my situation, and if so, how? What are the positive aspects of my situation or my job? What valuable things can I learn for later? How can I deal better with the situation to make it easier to bear? Could I take the challenges in a more playful way?
- Change it: Can I change the situation or my job? What exactly do I want to change? What possibilities for change are within my power? Who can help me with this? Who could I approach who can decide on the framework conditions? How could I change myself in this situation? What would I need to learn?
Burnout is not the problem, but a contribution to the solution
Unless a stressful situation resolves itself, sooner or later we will be forced to make a decision. I have experienced this myself. The longer we postpone the decision, the more likely it is that our body will take the decision away from us with a burnout: Leave it! In this respect, we should be grateful to our body for its competent reaction, which - at least for the time being - frees us from an awkward situation. Seen in this light, burnout is not the actual problem, but a contribution to its solution. It acts as our „emergency program“, so to speak, to protect us from potentially more serious damage. And thus gives us the opportunity to refocus on solving the actual problem.
Some suggestions
I would like to give you eleven suggestions that I have had very good experiences with and that can help prevent burnout:
- Work in a job that fulfills you and that you enjoy.
- In the event of acute overload: make prioritization suggestions to your superior and consistently demand a decision. A good boss will thank you for this, as it will enable them to keep you in work.
- Say no to others when you feel overwhelmed and say yes to yourself and your own needs more often.
- If you set yourself fewer goals, you will usually achieve even more.
- Take regular regeneration breaks. A short lunchtime walk around the company premises clears your head and recharges your batteries.
- Eat a healthy diet and drink plenty of water.
- Exercise regularly without forcing yourself to perform at your best.
- Get enough sleep. Tip for sleep problems in stressful times: Guided sleep hypnosis helps you to fall asleep and stay asleep.
- Maintain offline times in which you do without e-mails and switch off your cell phone.
- Practice relaxation techniques such as autogenic training, yoga or meditation.
- Avoid cigarettes and alcohol, and don't drink too much coffee.
Do you have any other tips for preventing burnout at an early stage?