Growing up in General Santos City, Rain Rivera Ramas came to Metro Manila in 1996 to work in one of the country’s noted companies. To prove that he had what it takes to become successful, he got so engrossed with his work in the corporate world.
“I worked six days a week, spending almost 12 hours in the office,” he said, adding that sometimes he had no time for himself. “My daily commute from Quezon City to Makati was an average of two hours per way.”
Although it was so strenuous and exhausting, he persevered. “The pay was good, the perks were great, but the work was demanding,” he said. When he was at the office, he had to battle the three Ps: politics, protocol and pressure.
“It was a glamorous job, but it slowly lost its glitter as fast as my blood pressure rose,” he admitted. Until one day, his temper just popped. “So, I resigned,” he said.
Now, he is back in his hometown running his own business—Rain Ramas Design Source—“with stress levels just a small fraction of how it was before.”
“Burnout is nature’s way of telling you you’ve been going through the motions, your soul has departed; you’re a zombie, a member of the walking dead, a sleepwalker,” wrote Sam Keen, author of Fire in the Belly: On Being a Man.
Dictionary defines burnout as “a state of emotional and physical exhaustion caused by a prolonged period of stress and frustration.” It is also described as “a complete depletion of energy or strength.”
More often than not, burnout is job-related. Dr. David Ballard, of the American Psychological Association described job burnout as “an extended period of time where someone experiences exhaustion and a lack of interest in things, resulting in a decline in their job performance.”
Here’s an explanation from the web site helpguide.org: “Most of us have days when we feel helpless, overloaded, or unappreciated—when dragging ourselves out of bed requires the determination of Hercules. If you feel like this most of the time, you may be burned out.”
The Canada-based Great-West Life Centre for Mental Health in the Workplace identified the following as signs and symptoms that an employee may be experiencing burnout: reduced efficiency and energy, lowered levels of motivation, increased errors, fatigue, headaches, irritability, increased frustration, suspiciousness, and more time spent working with less being accomplished.
According to the Center, severe burnout can result in self-medication with alcohol and other substances, sarcasm and negativity, and debilitating self-doubt. Left unattended, burnout may result in a number of outcomes, including: poor physical health, clinical depression, reduced job satisfaction, decreased productivity, increased absenteeism, increased risk of accident, poor workplace morale, communication breakdown and increased turnover.
Dr. Hans Seyle, acknowledged as the “Father” of the field of stress research, having gained worldwide recognition for introducing the concept of stress in a medical context, said burnout doesn’t happen overnight. Generally, it has three stages:
The first stage, which is the “alarm stage,” is called the “fight or flight” phase. This happens when a person faces a challenge or a difficult situation.
“Resistance stage” is the second stage, which has a longer span than the first stage. It is also the stage in which a person deals with issues more on a psychological basis.
The third and final stage is the “exhaustion stage.” During this stage, Dr. Seyle explained, the “alarm stage” returns and causes extreme fatigue, disease, disability and even death.
These days, burnout is a common concern. “Often, it’s the pace of our lives that creates this problem,” wrote Dr. Frank Lipman, a physician who wrote Revive: Stop Feeling Spent and Start Living Again.
According to Lipman, cultural and environmental stressors have compounded what he called the “total load” of what a person can handle without blowing his top. “We never turn off—we’re on our phones and computers and televisions all the time,” he said. “Apart from the food we eat, which is not helping, apart from the normal stresses we may have been under for years—a bad boss, a bad relationship—we have this added layer of technology that is making everything worse.”
Jill Metzler Patton, in an article published in the web site experiencelife.com, quoted Dr. Roberta Lee, vice chairman of integrative medicine at the Center for Health and Healing on New York City, that contemporary lifestyles of people today contribute to a “perfect storm” for chronic stress. “Burnout represents the most depleted end of the stress continuum,” the doctor said.
As to burnout sufferers, Lee said: “You’re a vacuous presence.” She went on to explain: “It’s not that you don’t want to be present; you do. It’s kind of like the ICU [intensive care unit] version of stress.”
While no one can escape from burnout, however, it can be prevented. As one of the chapters of the book, Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff, Dr. Richard Carlson suggested: “Prevent Burnout.”
“Work-related burnout is an enormous, disruptive and often expensive problem for millions of people,” Carlson wrote. “To put it bluntly, people get sick of and fed up with their jobs and crave a better, different, or more satisfying life.”
The award-winning author, who is also behind Slowing Down to the Speed of Life and You Can Be Happy No Matter What, admitted that there’s no way to guarantee the prevention of burnout, “but there are things you can do to put the odds in your favor.”
Balance and growth—these are the two things needed for a person not to experience burnout. “If you talk to people who aren’t burned out, you’ll discover that most of them strive to have a balance life and to be growth-oriented,” Carlson explained. “This means that while they work hard, compete well, strive for excellence, and have very specific, often lofty goals, they nevertheless insist on having a life outside of work—they enjoy and spend time with their families and friends, they exercise or enjoy hobbies, they value their free time, and strive to make a contribution to their community apart from their work.
“In addition, people who avoid burnout are constantly attempting to better themselves and to grow, not just professionally, but spiritually and emotionally, as well. They attend workshops or classes, they learn new things, and are open-minded. They strive to overcome their own blind spots. They have a fascination with learning and a zest for life. They are curious and enjoy listening to others.”
That may be easier said than done. But, on second thought, why not start now before it’s too late? “A good place to start is to evaluate your priorities apart from work,” Carlson suggested. “If you had to pick, what would be most important? Would it be to volunteer some time or learn to meditate? Is it your spiritual life that’s most important? Would it be to exercise on a regular basis, or something else entirely? Whatever it is, take a look at your calendar and begin to carve out the time. Anything is better than nothing.”
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