Everyone knows the feeling of fatigue and exhaustion. For many people, this is a consequence, triggered by stress, for example at work. For some people, this leads to the so-called burnout syndrome. But what if exactly the opposite occurs? Work becomes synonymous not with stress but with boredom.
What is burnout?
Burnout is caused by strong persistent mental and physical pressure. The patient feels unable to make positive changes in his life. He sees no solution to improve or establish his mental balance, which causes a feeling of helplessness and can escalate into self-sacrifice. Often the phase of strong stress is followed by the will to change this situation. However, this can be followed by renewed exhaustion, as the person affected puts too much on himself during the phases of change.
Burnout is characterized by symptoms such as fatigue to the point of exhaustion, decreasing resilience and frustration. Also found are signs of irritability, depression, sleep disturbances and pain, especially in the shoulders. It is not possible to give an exact time frame for when therapies are successful, as this is patient-dependent. In addition, there are a variety of treatment methods.
According to the definition of the World Health Organization (WHO), the term burnout syndrome should be used exclusively in a professional context.
What is boreout?
The term boreout refers to dissatisfaction at work, caused by permanent boredom or monotony. This is usually caused by a lack of absorption in one’s job, due to an unsuitable work environment or career choice. Interestingly, the permanent lack of job satisfaction causes the same symptoms as the Burnout Syndrome.
The three main elements of the boreout syndrome are:
- Underchallenge, as the employee wants to perform more than is required of him.
- Disinterest, here the person loses all interest in his tasks.
- Boredom, in this case, the sufferer is completely helpless and listless, because he does not know how to deal with the situation.
Often affected people come to behavioral strategies that feign employment. Affected people use these strategies paradoxically to prolong their situation instead of initiating improvement.
