BURNOUT in Young Professional Woman

In an ABC (Australia) news article this week was the topic of BURNOUT in young professional woman, which prompted my musing. In my practice I am noticing an increase in these young woman presenting with symptoms of burnout early in their careers due to the enormous amount of stress experienced in the workplace, coupled by their own high and unrelenting standards to achieve often above and beyond normal work expectations. As stress increases beyond manageable levels, their personal life, relationships, health and overall well-being are impacted heavily. And their work - the career that is so important to them – suffers as they spiral to a point where they are no longer able to cope in any part of their life, and typically it is at this point they seek help.

I had my own personal experience with BURNOUT. In my early thirties I was working full-time as an emergency nurse, studying a full-time load in my psychology degree, divorcing and raising three children. At the time I was driven by a belief that I could be some sort of superwoman and do it all. (NOT dissimilar thinking from the young women I now see in my practice.)

Whilst this was sustainable (at a cost) for a period of time, inevitably I burnt-out, and then every aspect of my life suffered and recovery took quite some time (and I'm not talking of  a few weeks or even a month or so). Now a decade or more later I have a healthier and more integrated relationship with my sense of self at work and am wiser about how I manage my work-life balance. The insight from my own personal experience of burnout and recovery assists my understanding when caring for these women in therapy as they struggling to navigate through the stress experienced in their working lives.

Whilst BURNOUT is often talked about, there id silence around the seriousness of its longer-term effect. Without intervention burnout can lead to physical and mental health illnesses, insomnia, relationship breakdowns, and problems with engagement in employment. Early detection and intervention helps to prevent BURNOUT turning from a manageable smoulder to an out of control wildfire.

Often your local family doctor is first port-of-call when seeking help for burnout distress. Overwhelmed, seeking time-off work may be the immediacy of need, however also consider a referral to a Clinical Psychologist for therapy. Good therapy will to give support through burnout recovery, to gain skills in managing the workload in a more sustainable manner and to help loosen the harsh internal taskmaster that maintains the unrelenting standards that is often the driver to the point of BURNOUT.