Beatha Coaching

By far the most common topic I have been asked about has been burnout: what is it? how do we mitigate against it? how can we recover? So over the next few posts I am going to do a series on burnout, including a deeper dive into what is happening in our bodies when we are in burnout, understanding chronic stress as a spectrum, recognising the signs of burnout in others, and applying appropriate interventions.

For this first post I will begin by highlighting the differences between burnout and standard mid-semester exhaustion, looking at common symptoms and some of the key stressors in academia that lead to burnout.

Part One – understanding and validating burnout

In 2019 burnout was officially recognised by the WHO as an occupational phenomenon, a syndrome resulting from chronic workplace stress. However, more recently the pandemic has thrown into stark relief the interconnected nature of our working and personal lives, and more research is now being done on burnout as a work-related, rather than work-specific, phenomenon.

As Mental Health UK describe it, “Burnout is a state of physical and emotional exhaustion”. In other words, it goes well beyond feeling tired and unmotivated. Burnout is a physiological condition that emerges from being a state of chronic stress for a long-time without sustained relief, and it cannot be alleviated simply by taking a break. In fact, burnout is progressive, in that it gets worse the longer it goes unaddressed. You can think of it like driving a car for long distances, putting in some fuel when absolutely necessary, but not otherwise doing any maintenance. Over time, the tires will become damaged, the oil and coolant will get low; the car may struggle on, but further more serious issues will start to emerge and need to be compensated for. And if you keep driving, eventually the car will become unsafe or just stop entirely. In the same way, burnout may start as a slightly above average level of stress, some feelings of low self-worth, poor sleep, withdrawal from things you enjoy. But left unaddressed, over time burnout becomes a collection of increasingly serious and debilitating mental and physical symptoms that require more drastic interventions to recover from.

Unfortunately, a lack of transparency in workplaces about how to access support for chronic stress, and working cultures that individualise staff and tie career progress to performance, means that many people will hide or dismiss their symptoms and keep working well into chronic burnout before realising they need help.

Common symptoms of burnout

Burnout is a result of sustained chronic stress. It is, therefore, a condition related to nervous system arousal, and produces a range of both physical and mental/emotional effects. Recognising burnout as both about mental health and as a fully embodied physiological condition is important for two reasons: firstly, burnout cannot be recovered from just by getting more rest and restoring your physical health, it is also essential to address the underlying issues that provoked and sustained such high stress levels or the burnout is likely to reoccur. Secondly, acknowledging burnout as a function of nervous system hyperarousal roots the condition firmly in the body, and reduces the stigma that has typically been associated with ideas of mental weakness and lack of resilience.

Below I give come of the common symptoms that are associated with burnout. They may not all be present, and they may show up with varying degrees of severity. I have divided them into cognitive, emotional, and physical symptoms. The list is not exhaustive.

Common cognitive symptoms of burnout: lower than usual productivity; lowered or absent creativity; procrastination; taking longer than usual to complete simple tasks; losing motivation quickly or mid-task; poor concentration; distracting thoughts; inability to finish creative work.

Common emotional symptoms of burnout: feeling generally overwhelmed; feeling helpless, trapped or defeated; feeling detached; feeling isolated, alone or misunderstood; taking a generally negative or cynical outlook; self-doubt; loss of joy in daily activities; withdrawal.

Common physical symptoms of burnout: gastrointestinal problems; lowered immune function; repeated infections like cystitis; recurring headaches; sleep issues; high blood pressure; palpitations; finding your normal exercise and physical activity harder; skin problems.

Of course, many of these symptoms may also be present with standard mid/late-semester exhaustion. The question is one of intensity and whether they subside quickly, returning you to your normal healthy state of functioning once you get a break. If you feel that your physical and emotional wellbeing have taken a nosedive, and your daily life is significantly impacted much or most of the time, then it is more likely to be burnout than temporarily heightened stress levels. You may also find that whilst your experience improves in the holidays, each year your recovery takes a little longer or becomes a little less complete (ie – leaving you with some milder but still present symptoms all year round). That can also be classed as progressive burnout.

Burnout in academia

The term burnout was originally coined by Fraudenberger in 1974, who called it “the high cost of high achievement”. And it is true that there is some evidence that perfectionist and idealistic personalities are more likely to experience burnout, Indeed, Fraudenberger described burnout as “the extinction of motivation or incentive, especially where one’s devotion to a cause or relationship fails to produce the desired results”. From this definition we can see why burnout may be so endemic in academia, with its enduring emphasis on vocation, and the consistent experience of swimming against the tide in an effort to create impact.

However, a Gallup poll in 2018 highlighted structural factors as more significant for generating workplace burnout, including: unreasonable time pressures; lack of communication and support from management; lack of role clarity; unmanageable workload; and unfair or inequitable treatment. From this list we can deduce that the high incidence of burnout in HE is due to a combination of cultural and systemic factors. Some common challenges in the sector which are likely to push academic experience from manageable stress into chronic stress and burnout include:

• Being pushed to regularly generate new ideas and content, often under significant time pressures and for minimal reward or recognition
• Constant but inconsistent evaluation, often with a lack of transparency
• A lack of job security and certainty, without clear and transparent routes to permanency
• Constantly changing schedules, including randomised timetabling and inconsistent meetings
• A culture of permeable boundaries between work and personal life
• Toxic shaming and presenteeism
• Individualised responsibility for success

Whilst none of these factors on their own is necessarily going to transform your working experience into one of chronic stress, together they generate a culture in which burnout becomes more likely and more common. The high incidence of burnout in academia in and of itself generates a repeating loop, in which symptoms that should be warning signs become normalised, and a culture of pushing through and carrying on makes recognising the need for sustained change and support less likely. In my next post I will explore the stress-burnout continuum, and how to know what help is most appropriate for different stages and severity of burnout.

What has been your experience of burnout in academia? Do you recognise the triggers and symptoms I have described above? Let me know below, or by messaging me on Twitter or LinkedIn.

If you are experiencing burnout and would like to work with someone to find ways to support yourself and to recover, I offer specialist coaching for academics that focuses on burnout prevention and recovery, as well as other workplace issues. You can find out more by following the links above or by emailing me an enquiry at francesca@beathacoaching.org