Burnout or stress?

We all experience stress but how much is too much? Would you recognize when you are experiencing burnout, and when you are experiencing stress?

Stress is usually temporary, and it involves frenetic energy when you constantly feel on edge. You feel frantic, overly burdened, and your racing thoughts might make it difficult to sleep or concentrate at work. For the most part, with regular periods of rest, you are quickly able to recover from stress.

Burnout is more of a long-term threat to your mental health. It is a persistent state of exhaustion, leaving you feeling depleted, sometimes even numb, and full of cynicism. In some cases, you can completely detach from the environment that is contributing to your burnout.

Today we are facing rapid changes in technology (for example, AI and social media) and a rapidly changing geo-political landscape at home and abroad. It is inevitable that we will feel stressed, but we do not have to experience burnout.

Get in touch if you would like to share how stress and burnout is impacting your life.

Chris Warren-Dickins
Psychotherapist in Ridgewood, New Jersey