The people who come to my clinic with burnout are rarely the ones who work least. They are usually conscientious, capable and have been running on reserve for a long time.
The three components
- Emotional exhaustion: tiredness that a weekend or a holiday no longer repairs
- Depersonalisation: cynicism, irritability and emotional distance from colleagues, patients or clients
- Reduced sense of accomplishment: the feeling that your work has stopped mattering
Where the body shows it first
Disturbed sleep, tension headaches, acidity, frequent minor infections, and a rising reliance on caffeine in the morning and alcohol at night. Many patients see three specialists for physical symptoms before anyone asks about work.
When burnout has become depression
Burnout is tied to a context; depression travels with you. If low mood persists through weekends and holidays, if you have lost interest in things you used to enjoy, if appetite or weight has changed significantly, or if you have thoughts of self-harm, this needs clinical treatment rather than a break.
What actually helps
- Protecting sleep timing before anything else — it is the foundation everything else rests on
- Real boundaries around after-hours messages, agreed explicitly rather than assumed
- Structured psychotherapy; CBT has the strongest evidence base
- Regular aerobic exercise, which has a genuine antidepressant effect
- Medication where symptoms are moderate or severe — it is not a last resort or a failure
Please ask for help earlier
Almost every patient tells me afterwards that they wish they had come six months sooner. Our consultations are confidential, held in a separate wing with its own entrance, and nothing is shared with your employer or family without your written consent.
