Note
You are here in the sub-theme Therapy of burnout. You can find general information on this topic under Burnout. There is no uniform therapy for burnout sufferers.
Often the affected persons come to a psychotherapeutic practice only after years of self-healing or repression attempts. First, the accompanying consequences of the development to burnout are often treated. For example anxiety, social phobias or depression.
There are also no specific drugs for burnout patients. Symptoms such as depression, sleeping disorders and anxiety can be treated with medication, but care must always be taken to ensure that burnout sufferers are subject to an increased risk of addiction, even to tranquillisers, for example. Serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) often serve this purpose.
Side effects can occur when taking SSRIs. Nausea, diarrhoea, loss of appetite, sleep disorders and erectile dysfunction are possible. Within the framework of an absolutely necessary psychotherapy, the specific problems of the patient (strong feelings of insanity, lack of self-esteem, social phobias, anxiety, etc.)
are addressed and treated. These therapies can be carried out by psychologists or psychiatrists and often last for years. They are always individually tailored to the patient and his or her underlying problems.
In behavioral therapy, especially the handling of conflict and stress situations is specifically practiced. In this way, the affected persons do not get into a state of complete overload in everyday life. Attending self-help groups can also be useful.
Here, the patient can find out that other people are also affected by the burn-out problem and exchange ideas with them. This can be beneficial for self-esteem. Physical fitness should also be encouraged with a healthy diet and lifestyle.
Not to forget regular breaks for rest and relaxation, both in private life and at work. It is often helpful there to simply switch off the mobile phone for a few hours. The social contacts in family and circle of friends should take up more space in life again, as they provide emotional support.
Duration of the therapy
The duration of the therapy of a burnout syndrome cannot be clearly defined. The most important factors in the prognosis of the duration are the stage at which the burnout was recognized and diagnosed, whether professional help was sought, the awareness of the affected person and how well he/she cooperates in the therapy. If, for example, the situation is such that the burnout is recognised at an early stage and the patient visits the family doctor, who can then refer him/her to a suitable doctor, it may well be that rapid crisis intervention and short-term therapy are already sufficient to help the affected person sufficiently and prevent the burnout from worsening.
In any case, the aim is to show the patient new and more suitable problem and conflict resolution strategies, to train him in his self-perception and thus to offer him help to help himself – also to prevent a recurrence of burnout. In any case, it is important that burnout patients seek professional help from a psychologist at times. Since the causes of burnout can be very diverse, the therapy approaches are also very different and adapted to the individual needs of the individual.
Basically, a distinction can be made between behaviour therapy, psychoanalytic and other depth psychological methods, individual and group therapies and, for example, so-called body therapies, which are intended to help the patient through sport and exercise. As a rule, the psychologist draws up an individually tailored programme with the patient, which may well include several aspects and therapeutic approaches, for example weekly individual sessions with the psychologist together with autogenic training and a self-help group. Drug therapy can be considered as a supportive measure.
Particularly if the depressive symptoms of the burnout syndrome are very pronounced, making it very difficult to cooperate in therapy, the use of medication can be considered in cooperation with the treating physician. The “harmless” natural remedies would be, for example, St. John’s wort, lavender hops, lemon balm and passion flower, which can help the patient to calm down and relax due to their slightly anti-depressive effect. Some patients also report that a specially tailored diet with amino acids and micronutrients has done them good.
Drugs from the group of serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) are often chosen, which are also used in the context of depression. The increased level of the messenger substance serotonin can contribute to psychological stabilisation and make it easier for burnout patients to turn to the actual psychotherapeutic treatment of burnout. Because, and this is important, the sole drug therapy of a burnout may alleviate the symptoms, but leaves the actual cause of the disease untouched and therefore cannot be classified as target-oriented.
And especially in the case of antidepressants, side effects are not to be neglected, which can sometimes be considerable. SSRIs often lead to undesirable effects such as hand trembling and dizziness, sweating and nausea, weight gain, fatigue, mood swings and loss of libido. It is therefore generally recommended to avoid medication such as antidepressants and to seek professional help from a psychologist in good time.
