8 Signs of Burnout You Shouldn’t Ignore

There are some things in life you should probably ignore. Like haters on the internet, telemarketers, or your boss’s unibrow.

And then there are things that need your attention ‘cause they only get worse when you try to be delulu that they exist. 

Like…burnout. 

As a coach for high-achieving professionals, I see people burning out all over the place. In fact, fun fact — it’s become so common that Sweden actually designated Burnout as a Syndrome. 

So, if you’re all, “Burnout? I don’t know her.” ….you might actually be besties with matching tattoos. 

In which case, we gotta have an honest convo. 

What even is burnout?

Here’s the thing: Burnout isn't stress. It's the RESULT of being constantly stressed the eff out, because of how you’re dealing with your stress (or in most cases — NOT dealing with it). 

I talk to my clients a lot about using their resources wisely — especially time, money, and energy.

But while lots of people talk about managing your time and money, there’s not much chit chat about how to manage your energy. 

Burnout is the result of not respecting your energetic limits. 

You focus on if you “can” do a task, not paying attention to whether or not you have the energetic resources to do it — Leading to an energetic collapse where you feel totally pooped out and unmotivated. 

Burnout’s like if you let your phone battery run out so many times that the battery stops charging and then you have to run to the genius bar and beg them to save your collection of cat videos that never saved to the cloud. 

…except you’re the battery.

Why do people burn out?

High-achievers are wired for burnout. Y’all are out here — doing all the things, looking all successful and capable and helpful and badassy — when all you really want is a nap.

‘Cause high-achievers have a tendency to operate in a certain way that puts them on the road to burnout.

Which is why you try changing jobs or circumstances, only to end up burnt out…again.

So, yeah — maybe your burnout is caused by something outside of you, like having:

• A gigantic workload

• Little support from others

• Lack of autonomy, power, or recognition

• The wrong job that’s not at all your passion

Or it might be caused by the way you’re doing life and work and success, like:

• Being a straight-up workaholic

• Overfunctioning 

• Never celebrating your success

• Always being “on”

• IGNORING YOUR BURNOUT SYMPTOMS (yelling ‘cause I love you)

Stages of burnout

I’m going to geek out on you for a second and talk about your nervous system — aka, that biological thing inside you that sends you into fight-or-flight so you don’t get eaten by lions and shit.

Your nervous system is not designed to stay in fight-or-flight indefinitely. So when it’s like, “Enough of this!” your body has two options — recover and calm the eff down OR collapse and freeze.

Now here’s the kicker — A lot of us high-achievers have learned how to still function and get shit done while in a freeze state. 

But if you stay in functional freeze for too long, your system eventually craps out, you find yourself in a state of severe burnout, and all you can do is binge-watch true crime documentaries.

The stages of burnout look a little something like this:

• Stage 1 — Stress: Life is stressful but you have the resources to cope with them, recover, and deal with the next stressy thing 

• Stage 2 — Chronic Stress: Life is stressful, the hits keep on coming, and you can’t seem to turn “off” — even when things kind of calm down

• Stage 3 — Burnout (Functional Freeze): Everything (including making simple decisions) feels extra hard and you have JUST enough energy to get through your day

• Stage 4 — Severe Burnout (Depression):  Stick a fork in you because you’re done. Nothing feels fun, you have no motivation, and you think you might be depressed.

Why self-care and vacations aren’t fixing your burn out

You do yoga and meditate and go on vacation every year — So why are you still battling burnout? 

Here’s why: 

• You’re doing self-care wrong and it’s adding to your stress

• You suck at resting and spend the whole time thinking about work or feeling guilty for not being productive

• You go on vacation, relax your booty off, only to jump back into your super stressed life, work, and ways of doing things

When I worked as a therapist in the prison, I shared an office with a coworker who went on vacation to a Buddhist retreat. When she returned, she was so freaking Zen that her entire voice had changed. But by the end of the workday, the Zen had abandoned ship, her voice had returned to normal, and she was back to feeling completely stressed and overwhelmed.

8 symptoms of burnout you shouldn’t ignore

Ignoring your burnout symptoms is like ignoring the gas light in your car — You and I both know it’s not going to end well.

So here are 8 signs you better start looking for a gas station:

1. Coffee stops working — I’m not talking about being tired. I’m talking about EXHAUSTION. It takes all your energy just to keep the day-to-day things afloat. Even easy tasks feel hard and draining. And it doesn’t matter how much sleep you get or how many venti double shot whatevers you pound, you’re still totally exhausted.

2. Weird body stuff — Headaches, stomachy things, random aches and pains — You might think it's just stress, but if these physical complaints keep popping up, it could be burnout creeping in. Your body is trying to talk to you. Don’t ignore it!

3. Everything is awful — You hate everyone and everything and the world is a giant, irritating, frustrating pile of disappointment. Some people call it cynicism but you like to think of yourself as a realist. No, this is not a bad mood or low blood sugar. This is who you are now. (Or maybe you’re just burnt out)

4. Going through the motions — You’ve lost your spark. Sure, this stuff used to be interesting but now it all feels pointless. You’re just passing time until the weekend, your next vacation, or even retirement. Do you feel burnt out because you lack purpose or do you feel a lack of purpose because you’re burnt out? 

5. Sleep issues — Here’s a sick joke: You’re exhausted and yet you have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep. It sounds fun and rhymey but feeling constantly wired and tired at the same time is a whole lot of not fun. This isn’t a just a bad night’s sleep. This could be burnout.

6. Feeling overwhelmed by small tasks — You felt personally victimized by the empty toilet paper cardboard tube in the bathroom. Do simple tasks like doing the dishes or answering that email from Bob feel monumental? If you’re overwhelmed by the tiniest responsibilities, burnout could be turning molehills into mountains.

7. Chronic indecisiveness — What should you have for lunch? What movie should you watch? Is it better to wear the cute shoes or the comfortable ones? And what the hell are you going to do with your life? When burnout strikes, even the smallest decisions feel paralyzing. You’re stuck in an endless loop of “I don’t know.”

8. Daydreams about running away — You think about burning it all down, getting a job at Starbucks, or moving to a private island where no one can cc you on a 20-deep email thread about Sue’s questionable hygiene. When burnout sets in, pulling an Eat-Pray-Love starts sounding pretty good. 

How to fix burnout

We’ve established that you can’t cure burnout with vacations or typical self-care tips. And a lot of times you can’t fix it with “life hacks,” fancy calendars, meal-prepping, or changing your job.

If you want to solve burnout — You need to get to the ROOT of the problem.

Because burnout is usually caused by long-standing patterns that can’t be fixed with a 3-day weekend. 

So until you understand how and why you got burnt out, you may find yourself in the same situation over and over. And that’s annoying as shit. 

So, here’s what it takes to change things:

• Identify the patterns, habits, and environments that lead to burn out

• Find the things that energize you and provide joy

• Create a life and career that prioritizes energizing activities

• Keep shitty burnout habits in check 

Imagine waking up feeling excited and confident about what you’re going to do that day. Imagine coming home from work with the energy to enjoy your friends and family before going to bed, feeling accomplished. 

Success can feel fun, interesting, and exciting.

You deserve work that feels meaningful and fulfilling. And you need energy to do it sustainably. 

If you want coaching, accountability, and a plan that will get you there, then click here to apply for private coaching with me. It’s time to eliminate burnout and start succeeding in a way that feels good. 

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Hi! I’m Erica

Licensed psychotherapist. Corporate dropout. Wife to Brendan. Mom to twins + one. ADHDer. Slow runner. Coffee drinker. Swear words enthusiast.

I know exactly what it’s like to have a life that looks successful on the outside but feel chronically exhausted, frustrated, and completely lost on the inside.

I help underachieving high-achievers create lives and careers they love, without burning out.

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