Are you close to burning out?

The World Health Organization (WHO) recently added burnout to its classification of diseases.

The organisation describes burnout as a syndrome brought on by work stress that’s not been properly managed. As an entrepreneur or employee, you don’t need anyone to tell you that you’re susceptible to stress.

There’s a thin line between a heavy workload and excessive, burdensome work, and learning when you cross it can help you avoid falling into dangerous territory.

Discussions around burnout have progressively gone mainstream in recent years. In the early 1970s, however, the syndrome was not a point of concern; in fact, only drug addicts were thought to suffer from it.

What changed opinions was German-American psychologist Herbert Freudenberger who diagnosed burnout among volunteers, who were not at all drug addicts, at a clinic for the homeless in New York. In 1974, the psychologist led the charge to bring the discussion on the syndrome to the public.

In more recent years, the race to keep up with competition and technological changes has led to an overworked, demotivated population that has a short fuse, is emotionally drained and is more cynical.

Research done three years ago by University of Nairobi business students on top companies in Kenya found that a majority of participants reported experiencing a variety of physiological symptoms as a result of stress, including headaches, high blood pressure and poor sleeping patterns.

So how can you tell if you’re on the verge of burning out?

WHO notes that there are three elements to burnout: feeling exhausted, being mentally detached from your job, and registering poorer performance at work.

To stop yourself from getting to this point, look out for the signs that you’re on a slippery slope. Here are five things to constantly monitor.

1. Increased alcohol intake

Alcohol has long been popularised as a solution to stress in the workplace. More often than not, you’ll hear people say, ‘After the day I’ve had, I need a shot of whiskey’ or ‘I deserve a glass of wine’.

While this in itself isn’t a problem, an overdependence on alcohol to get through a day is. If you notice that you’re craving alcohol more than you used to, you may need to check your stress levels as you could be overworked.

Consider evaluating your work so you have less to do in a day, and find a way to take regular breaks. This is especially important as a dependency on alcohol could quickly lead to addiction.

2. Relying on sugar to push through a work day

Another symptom of near-burnout is a reliance on sugar to pump up your workday. If your energy levels keep fluctuating during the day you could be getting burned out.

It’s okay to space out your meals throughout the day, but needing a sugar high could signify a problem.

You may be burning out, or suffering from extremely low blood sugar. Either way, monitor this coping strategy and try to get it in check.

3. Tiredness that won’t go away

Too much work definitely leads to fatigue, but excessive fatigue should be investigated. If you get tired too easily and the fatigue doesn’t seem to go away, you could be on the verge of burnout.

Normally, fatigue should clear once you have a good night’s rest, but if you seemingly have prolonged general tiredness, be wary. Similarly, be aware of not having the energy to work out or take a walk.

4. Depression

Depression is a pre-burnout symptom. You begin to become restless and aloof from your work. Once you notice yourself losing patience with customers or your fellow colleagues, or not caring whether your bosses are taking issue with you or not, it may be time to consider that you’re getting burned out.

Normally, you can only do so much for so long in an environment you don’t enjoy being in. Identify the causes of stress in your work and try to minimise them or find a way of working on them before they ruin your career.

5. Despising your work

Ever woken up on a Monday morning and wondered why it was Monday again? Or woken up to the sudden realisation that you hate your work? Well, a major indicator of burnout is losing interest in what gave you joy before.

Also, if you notice your job no longer seems to serve any purpose and everything just seems so disappointing, yet you didn’t feel this way when you were starting out, it may be time to take a step back from work.

While stress can sometimes motivate you to work harder, it can also go horribly wrong and derail the big career plans you had.

Ultimately, however, whatever the underlying causes of your stress and burnout, you owe it to yourself to do what it takes to be kind to yourself.

You can use the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), a popular test designed in 1981 that’s still relevant today, to measure burnout. The MBI-General Survey measures things like exhaustion, cynicism, and how well you think you’re doing at work.