 Hey, Psych2goers, let's talk about burnout. Yup, it's a rough one today. Are you a high achiever? Do you work really, really hard during the week? Are detailed plans and complicated to-do lists the very fiber of your being? Even if you manage to accomplish everything you wanted, do you still find yourself totally exhausted and unsatisfied? You may be achieving all of your goals, which is great. Yet, you may also be working too hard to achieve those very same goals. Does this sound familiar? It's very likely that you may be experiencing burnout. According to helpguide.org, burnout is classified as a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion caused by excessive and prolonged stress. It occurs when you feel overwhelmed, emotionally drained, and unable to meet constant demands. So how do you know for sure if you're experiencing burnout? Well, here are the seven stages of burnout. Which stage are you in? Number one, a desired level of high achievement. The first level isn't necessarily connected to burnout itself. You can be a high achiever who's still able to balance all of your work during the week. There's nothing inherently wrong with wanting to do your best in any situation, and people may appreciate it as well. Your desire to be a high achiever can be the basis for a potential burnout later on, though. If you're the kind of person who desires a constant high level of success, this may be because you also feel a strong need to prove yourself. Proving yourself is a key thing that people often need when they're around others. The key thing to remember when wanting to prove yourself is that it's not just for one particular project. You most likely want to be successful with all sorts of different work. If others appreciate the hard work you put into something, this will potentially create an unspoken expectation on yourself. It can be created by others or even yourself. You'll likely desire to keep working harder and harder to maintain this initial success. It's important to keep track of why you're working so hard. Ask yourself, is it because you want to, or do you think it's because you're expected to by others? Number two, neglect. Do you find yourself forgetting to change your clothes from the day before? Did you forget to apply deodorant, brush your teeth, or even have a shower? Oops, do you find yourself forgetting little details about your work? You may be becoming neglectful. When you have a lot of work to get done, sometimes you might become overwhelmed by trying to get too much done in a short time. There are only so many hours in a day. The burnout at this stage can be due to the fact that you may be too tired. If you're lacking in energy, you may be eating less than your body needs to properly function. Having less than three square meals a day not only affects your diet, but also how you generally feel about yourself. If you're avoiding meals, then you may become tired. This neglect can be so aggressive at times that you might be too tired to eat. Why? Because you're not eating in the first place. Does that make sense? Think of a snake eating its own tail, also known as an aroboros. Oh, hey there. Did you relate to these two stages so far? Comment below. We want to remind you to take it easy and if you're feeling burnt out, drink plenty of water and get enough rest because you deserve it. Also, if you enjoy our content, don't forget to hit the like button and subscribe to our channel for more content. Did you do it? It's okay, I'll wait. Done? Thanks. Now, let's move on to the next point. Number three, denial. Do you find yourself easily frustrated by even the most minor of inconveniences or the simplest of conversations? Is your first instinct at that very question to shout, no, I don't? If you're at the third level of burnout, you're probably feeling denial even if you claim you're not. Here, you'll likely take issue with accepting responsibility for problems that you might have caused. Say you have an aggressive outburst at a friend during your morning coffee. This moment might shock your friend because it seemed like such an out-of-character moment for you. When you're in denial, you're more likely not to apologize for your behavior. If your friend knows about your need for a higher level of achievement, they may call you out for this apparent burnout-based attitude. The denial may kick in where you insist that you're fine and not overworking yourself. Number four, withdrawal. Do you often find yourself withdrawing from certain situations? If you find yourself denying the amount of stress you're under, your response may be to withdraw. The pain you could be ignoring can sometimes become so sharp and so great. The only response that you can think of may be withdrawing entirely. Removing yourself from the situation and to a greater extent your emotions is an important defense mechanism to recognize in yourself. At this stage, you'll likely ignore friends, family, and social functions. Do you find yourself ignoring text messages? It's normal to not respond to one or two texts here and there. Most people do this. If you're feeling burned out, those one or two texts can become five or six, maybe 10 or 12. Burnout can cause you to ignore almost all of your messages to the point that you feel overwhelmed by not texting even one person back. The more you let the messages build, the less likely you are to ever reply back. That withdrawal may even make you want to avoid going to parties. It takes a lot of energy to be in social settings for sure, especially if you identify as an introvert. If you find yourself ignoring contact with your loved ones, whether that's digitally or in person, it may upset your social circle. Number five, emptiness and depersonalization. The fifth level of burnout is definitely a tough one. Once you've removed yourself from your social life, you may begin to feel an overwhelming sense of emptiness. You may be unhappy with your job, for instance. If your work makes you feel entirely unfulfilled, it's possible that you've lost your own identity and sense of self along the way. If the work you do feels utterly soul-crushing, you may feel like just another cog in the corporate machine. As someone who's a hard worker, you may be more likely to become frustrated when all you do at your job goes seemingly unappreciated. Does your boss almost never say thank you? Did they only talk to you whenever they have a problem that needs fixing? Feeling unappreciated at work is a key factor in why people often quit their job. There's a common saying for this. People don't quit jobs, they quit bad bosses. Do you feel this deep in your bones? If your job is no longer satisfactory, you probably feel a lot less like an individual person and more of a collective conglomerate lost in the corporate shuffle. Talking to a friend or medical professional about how your feeling may help. Number six, depression and numbness. Do you feel empty lately? The irony of numbness is that there's no physical sensation in your body. How do you actually feel when you're numb? It may be hard to describe the exact sensation, but you certainly know it when it happens. The emptiness that can be experienced when you're depressed may be so great that you feel numb, even on an emotional level. If you feel numb to this scale, you may be more inclined to partake in substance and or drug abuse. This can lead to intense depression. Do the sails on your boat feel totally deflated? Do you find almost all of your motivation to be totally gone? When you're depressed, it can make you feel entirely lost and adrift at sea. When you're aimlessly drifting, it's because you don't have any wind to guide you. Depression can feel like all the wind has gone from your life. Number seven, exhaustion and collapse. The seventh and final stage of burnout is, you guessed it, the hardest one to deal with. These feelings can manifest themselves in both physical and emotional forms. When you are physically burnt out, your legs can turn to jelly, figuratively, not literally, thankfully. But the sensation of physical burnout can make you feel like all bone structure inside of your body has become entirely non-existent. Emotional burnout is a similar feeling to those pesky jelly legs, but instead it's your brain. If you're emotionally exhausted, then activities you once used to enjoy like reading a book or watching a movie may no longer be fun for you. They may become more of a chore than something that you used to do to rest and relax. If you've reached that last level, it's very important that you recognize the fact that you've gotten there. The first step to solving a problem is recognizing there is one. Eating some nutritious food, getting better sleep or listening to music you enjoy can all help lower the stress that has somatically built itself up inside your body. Did any of these symptoms ring a bell for you? Where do you rank on this scale? Are you doing okay? Better than you thought? Or a lot more soft than you first realized. Feel free to share with us in the comments below. Burnout is something that many of us experience on a daily, if not weekly basis. It's not something healthy to experience by any metric. It can also go on easily unnoticed and if untreated, burnout can get much, much worse. So if you're experiencing burnout, talking to a counselor or medical professional may help. Do you have a friend or family member who could use some encouragement? Is there someone out there who would benefit from this video? While we may not know what's going on, others may be able to point it out to us. If people you love reach out, it's because they care and want what's best for you. We know the hardest thing to do when you are indeed struggling is to let them in. So if you found this video useful, feel free to share it with someone who could use it. Subscribe to Psych2Go and hit the notification bell icon for more content like this. As always, thanks for watching.