Synonyms
- Burnout
- Exhaustion
- Burnout/Burnout
- State of total exhaustion
- Burn out
Definition
The name “burnout” comes from the English “to burn out”: “burn out”. This is a state of emotional and physical exhaustion that is accompanied by a massive lack of drive and performance. People in social professions, such as nurses, doctors and teachers, are particularly affected by burnout.
These are often people who devote themselves devotedly to their profession and often receive little recognition. Also at risk for a burnout are people who define themselves primarily through their profession and the strenuous work they do, putting everything else like social contacts and hobbies in the background. If these people then experience frustration at work, the result is ultimately a breakdown because they lack the right balance.
Often the burnout syndrome is the final stage of a previously prolonged overstraining or overwork. The path to burnout sometimes takes several years. Typically, a burnout syndrome results from a combination of a sense of duty, motivation, ambition and perfectionism paired with ongoing stress, strong pressure to perform and/or excessive demands.
Triggers for a burnout are A burnout usually develops insidiously and often lasts several months to years. In the end, however, it always ends in a complete physical and mental breakdown, where even the simplest tasks no longer seem feasible. In medicine, the burnout syndrome is not recognised as a disease in its own right, but is merely classified in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) -10 key to “problems related to difficulties in coping with life”.
- A too high demand on oneself, as well as too much commitment
- The willingness to work non-stop
- The postponement of own needs and social contacts
- The renunciation of rest and relaxation
According to representative studies, around 7% of all employees suffer from burn-out symptoms. 20-30% of all workers are at risk. In principle, a burnout can affect anyone.
Even people who are not working, for example schoolchildren, pensioners or the unemployed, are affected by the burn-out syndrome. Nevertheless, certain occupational groups (e.g. teachers, managers, nurses, social workers, pastors, doctors) have particularly high sickness rates with corresponding diagnoses. However, it is not the number of weekly working hours that is decisive, but rather the pressure to perform, mental stress, individual factors and working conditions, which ultimately lead to complete exhaustion.
There are no exact figures on annual new cases of illness, as the burn-out syndrome is not a clearly defined illness, but a clinical picture with diverse and sometimes very different symptoms. Scientifically, the actual number of new cases each year is very difficult to determine. It is certain, however, that the number of new cases is increasing more and more every year and that the burn-out syndrome is now spreading to all occupational groups.
All articles in this series: