Susan Biali Haas M.D. | Posted July 19, 2019 | Reviewed by Gary Drevitch

I first experienced severe burnout (and overlapping depression) years ago, when I was an Emergency Medicine resident. I never wanted to hit bottom that hard ever again and decided to learn everything I could about resilience and mental wellness.

I started working as a coach over a decade ago, helping busy, overwhelmed women create more balanced, meaningful lives. Almost every client has some sort of work-related stress they need help with. Over the last few years, most are either on the edge of burnout or in the throes of severe work-related depletion.

Many are so fed up that they hire me to help them ditch their current position and find something else.

If possible, I counsel clients to wait and try smaller changes first. If you’re suffering from true burnout, you’re emotionally and mentally exhausted and not in a good zone to make life-altering decisions.

Here’s what I advise clients to do:

1. Identify what’s causing you the most stress, and see if there’s a solution.

Maslach and Leiter, leading researchers on the subject of burnout, determined that there are six areas of work-life that can lead to burnout: excess workloads, lack of control, insufficient rewards, workplace community issues, unfair practices, and value conflicts.

I’m working with a client who exhibits almost all the signs of burnout. She’s seriously considering leaving her position, though she used to love her work and still loves the company. In cases like hers, I’m concerned that thoughts of leaving are almost exclusively burnout-related.

Some very specific issues are pushing her over the edge. Rather than sending in her resignation, she asked her superiors if they could make key changes. They highly value her and have agreed to respond to her requests. If they do, the positive impact will be significant, and far more convenient than having to chase down new work.

2. Stop doing work that’s not yours.

Excess workloads are one of the most common causes of burnout. When I ask clients where they might be able to cut back, the usual response is “Nowhere!” My next question: “Is there anything you’re doing at work that’s really someone else’s responsibility?”

There almost always is. Highly conscientious people are at high risk for burnout, and they’re usually doing other people’s work. They want to help (rescue) others, or have a hard time saying no. Or perfectionism has entered in: The other person won’t do the task as well as they can, even though it’s not their responsibility.

If you’re overwhelmed with work, look at everything you’re doing, and then get rid of anything you don’t actually have to do.

3. Place hard boundaries between work and the rest of your life.

Another client feels extremely stressed and burdened by her job, with little to no time for herself. She starts early, works long hours, and usually works into the evening at home. She doesn’t actually have to, but she feels continually pressured and ends up working in her off hours by default.

When I asked her what she might do about this, her response was immediate: “I can leave my laptop at work! That way when I’m at home, I’ll be forced to do something else.” Perfect. I’ve had other clients do similar things, such as putting their work phone in a drawer—not to be touched—over weekends.

How might you draw clearer boundaries between work and home?

4. Start taking care of yourself physically.

If you’re getting less than seven hours of sleep a night, you’re likely to feel exhausted and fried. If you’re skipping breakfast, mainlining espresso and grabbing junk food all day to keep yourself going, you’ll be sure to feel awful and perform even worse. If you sit at a desk all day without breaks and never get any exercise, it’s not surprising that you feel irritable and stressed.

If you’re scrimping on sleep, not eating properly, or hardly moving at all in a given day, this is good news to me as a coach, because I know that as soon as you begin to get more regular sleep, eat better, and get moving, you’ll feel dramatically better. You might even start liking your job again.

As I always say, if you feel like you’re burning out it’s important to see your doctor or a qualified psychological professional. (This post is not intended to replace their advice). As I personally experienced, burnout can overlap with depression. Some experts even believe that burnout is a work-related form of depression. Other medical conditions can also present with similar symptoms. Life’s too short to feel continually stressed and at the end of your rope. Try these steps to take your life back, and see how much better you feel.

Original Post: 4 Things to Do When You’re Burning Out at Work

Copyright belongs to the original author.

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应对工作倦怠的四个方法

Susan Biali Haas M.D. | 2019年7月19日 | 审阅：Gary Drevitch

几年前，当我还是急诊医学住院医生时，我第一次经历了严重的倦怠（伴随着抑郁症）。 我再也不想跌入如此深的谷底，于是决定学习所有与韧性和心理健康相关的知识。

十多年前，我开始作为教练工作，帮助忙碌且不堪重负的女性创造更加平衡、有意义的生活。 几乎每个客户都需要帮助应对某种与工作相关的压力。 在过去的几年里，大多数客户要么处在倦怠的边缘，要么深陷严重的工作疲惫中。

很多人厌倦到了极点，他们雇我来帮助他们摆脱当前的职位，寻找其他工作。

如果可能，我会建议客户先等待，并尝试做一些小的改变。 如果你正遭受真正的倦怠，你在情感和心理上都已经非常疲惫，不适合做出改变生活的重大决定。

以下是我建议客户采取的步骤：

1. 找出是什么让你最感压力，并看看是否有解决方案。

倦怠领域的领军研究者Maslach和Leiter发现，有六个工作生活领域可能导致倦怠：工作负荷过重、缺乏控制、奖励不足、工作社区问题、不公平的做法和价值冲突。

我正在和一位几乎表现出所有倦怠迹象的客户合作。 她正在认真考虑辞职，尽管她曾经热爱她的工作，仍然喜欢这家公司。 像她这样的情况，我担心她的离职想法几乎完全是由倦怠驱动的。

一些非常具体的问题正在将她推向边缘。 她没有提交辞呈，而是向上级提出是否可以进行关键的改变。 他们非常重视她，已经同意回应她的请求。 如果他们的改变能够落实，带来的积极影响将是巨大的，比寻找新工作要方便得多。

2. 停止做不属于你的工作。

工作负荷过重是导致倦怠最常见的原因之一。 当我问客户他们在哪些方面可以减少工作量时，通常的回答是：“没有！” 我的下一个问题是：“你有没有在做本该是别人的工作？”

几乎总是有的。 有高度责任感的人很容易倦怠，他们通常在做别人的工作。 他们想要帮助（拯救）他人，或者难以拒绝请求。 或者，完美主义作祟：虽然这不是他们的责任，但他们觉得别人做不好这项任务。

如果你感到工作负担过重，审视一下你在做的所有工作，然后剔除掉那些你实际上不必做的工作。

3. 在工作和生活之间设定明确的界限。

另一位客户感到工作压力大，负担沉重，几乎没有属于自己的时间。 她每天早早开始工作，工作很长时间，通常会在晚上回到家后继续工作。 她其实不需要这样做，但总是感到有压力，最终默认在下班时间也在工作。

当我问她可以怎么改变这种情况时，她立刻回答：“我可以把笔记本电脑留在公司！这样我回家时就被迫去做别的事情。” 完美的解决方案。 我有其他客户采取过类似的做法，比如把工作手机放在抽屉里——整个周末都不会碰它。

你如何在工作和家庭之间划出更明确的界限？

4. 开始照顾好自己的身体。

如果你每晚睡眠时间不足七小时，你很可能会感到精疲力尽。 如果你跳过早餐、靠浓缩咖啡维持精力并整天吃垃圾食品，你一定会感觉糟糕，工作表现也会变得更差。 如果你整天坐在办公桌前，没有任何休息时间，也不进行锻炼，那么你感到易怒和压力大也就不足为奇了。

如果你睡眠不足、饮食不规律或者一天几乎不运动，作为教练，我反倒觉得这是好消息，因为我知道，一旦你开始规律睡眠、饮食改善并多动起来，你会感觉好得多。 你甚至可能重新喜欢上你的工作。

正如我常说的，如果你觉得自己快要倦怠，重要的是去看医生或合格的心理专家。 （这篇文章并非旨在取代他们的建议）。 正如我个人经历的那样，倦怠可能伴随有抑郁症。 一些专家甚至认为倦怠是一种与工作相关的抑郁症。 其他医学状况也可能表现出类似的症状。 生活太短暂了，不应该让自己总是感到压力重重、走投无路。 尝试这些步骤来找回你的生活，看看自己感觉会好多少。

原文链接: 4 Things to Do When You’re Burning Out at Work

版权属于原作者，本翻译仅供学习用途。