How to recognize burnout warning signs
Aaron Shaw, OTR/L, CHT, CSCS breaks down key indicators that a professional may be burning out
In this video, Aaron Shaw, OTR/L, CHT, CSCS, host of the podcast Healthspan Digest, highlights some of the red flags that may indicate burnout. According to Shaw, key indicators include a persistent sense of dread and preoccupation with work, a lack of control over one's work, and more.
In this previous interview with Shaw, he shares some ways to manage stress and prevent burnout.
Below is the interview transcript, lightly edited for clarity:
Aaron Shaw, OTR/L, CHT, CSCS: I think some of the warning signs to be concerned about with vets having some mental health challenges, I think one of the biggest ones would be the sense that the stress of work is on the mind 24 hours a day. So, there's a sense of dread going into work. There's a sense of, you know, [unease] during the work day and stress and feeling overwhelmed, and then leaving work and just being preoccupied with the idea that ‘I’m going to have to go back into the office and do this again tomorrow and the next day’ or the next month, or the next years.
I think those are red flags, because I think that all jobs are challenging, and all careers can be challenging, and so it would be normal to have stressful periods, and then periods where you feel like you have more control. The warning sign is really when somebody feels that they don't have any control over their work, how they do work, don't have any control over themselves and being able to manage stress, that's a sign of being a little bit out of control.
One, it’s certainly a sign for somebody who may not be long for the career and it's really hard to sustain [a] prolonged sense of being uncomfortable and overwhelmed and burned out, but it's really dangerous. I mean, dangerous, you know, from a mental health perspective and a physical health perspective. I mean, our bodies aren't designed to be under constant stress. But there are ways, there are things we can do to help mitigate some of that. Some of these things to decrease stress and to decrease the risk of burnout, require some proactive activities.
