Career Burnout, Anxiety & Indecision

Work & Career Burnout

Questions you may want to consider if you are experiencing work-related stresx: Are you feeling increasingly anxious or stressed about what seems like “little things” in your life? Do you find yourself snapping at people in your life and not understanding why? Or have you noticed you’ve stopped caring about work and other important things in your life?

More frequently than ever, I see clients who share these classic symptoms of career burnout. I work together with you to establish self-care and balance while respecting the needs of demanding careers.

What exactly is “Work Burnout?”

One of the reasons work or career burnout is difficult to identify is because it is usually a slow and insidious process. It begins to develop when you are stressed at work, putting in long hours, not feeling recognized or otherwise frustrated with your job or career, and is exacerbated with personal and emotional stressors.

Why feeling "burnt out" at work is more common than ever

Even if you don’t work in a traditionally high-stress career, most people experience some form of work burnout at some point in their lives. Whether it occurs at a particularly pressured stage in a career or working without taking needed breaks or vacations, burnout is increasingly common.

People also found that working from home during COVID easily blurred the line between personal and professional, resulting in people actually feeling more pressure to work longer hours and into weekends. Additionally, without the usual commute separating work from home, people don’t have that personal time to mentally prepare for and wind down from the work day. And since it’s not uncommon for a bedroom to double as an office, boundaries are even fuzzier. For those that are again working in the office, there is a loss of extra time gained from the flexibility of working at home and the lack of commute time.

How burnout shows up

Most people have trouble identifying burnout because it can manifest in many different ways, and many don’t immediately associate them with feeling burnt out and may attribute signs to other areas of life, such as relationship issues or mood swings.

Common indicators of burnout include:

Anxiety about the future is normal

Uncertainty and fear around finances, career security, and future opportunities also occur at times during the course of a career, and sometimes it can be difficult to determine the difference between normal anxiety and work burnout.

Two questions to ask yourself are: 1) How well have I been maintaining a good work/life balance? and, 2) Is my anxiety coupled with a decrease in attendance at work and/or lack of concern around quality of work?

Sadness and depression are also very common

If you have been feeling increasingly depressed and also “stuck” in life and can’t attribute it to issues outside of work, you may be coping with career burnout. If sadness and hopelessness are occurring with frustration around workload, colleagues, or managers, you may need to examine your own needs and self-care.

Why Feeling Burnt Out At Work Is More Common Than Ever

People have also found that working from home full-time or via a hybrid model has blurred the line between personal and professional, resulting in people actually feeling more pressure to work longer hours and into weekends.

Additionally, when there is no commute separating work from home, people don’t have that personal time to naturally prepare for and wind down from the work day. And since it’s not uncommon for a bedroom to double as an office, boundaries can be even fuzzier.

How Burnout Shows Up

Most people have trouble identifying burnout because it can manifest in many different ways, and many don’t immediately associate symptoms with feeling “burnt out.” People often attribute signs to other areas of life, such as relationship issues or mood swings.

Common indicators of burnout include

Anxiety About The Future Is Normal

Uncertainty and fear around finances, career security and future opportunities also occur at times during the course of a career, and sometimes it can be difficult to determine the difference between normal anxiety and work burnout.

One question to ask yourself is how well have you been maintaining a good work/life balance, and if your anxiety is coupled with a decrease in attention at work and lack of concern.

Sadness And Depressive Feelings Are Also Very Common

If you have been feeling increasingly depressed and also “stuck” in life and can’t attribute it to issues outside of work, you may be coping with career burnout.

If sadness and hopelessness is coupled with a preoccupation with frustration around workload, colleagues or managers, you may consider taking time off and seeing if your perspective changes.

How Can I Get Started?

I offer a free 15-minute phone consultation as an opportunity for you and your partner to ask questions, and for me to get a general sense of your communication problems and why you’re seeking therapy now.

From there, we can determine whether you would like to schedule an
initial session and go from there!

Get in touch with me

You can reach me via phone or email for a free 15-minute consultation, and I will respond within 24 hours.