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5 stages of exhaustion

In my last article, I discussed burnout risk factors, and at the end of that article, I asked you to rate your burnout risk level. The experience of burnout is not an overnight event. Burnout is something that develops over time because we don’t recognize the warning signs or do something about it. We recognize that warning lights and strange sounds coming from our car mean it’s time to find out what’s wrong and fix it. But we often ignore the warning signs that come from our bodies. I’ll cover the five stages of burnout so you can better recognize the warning signs and have a chance to do something about it before the effects of burnout take over your body, mind, and life.

There are five stages of exhaustion. There are no set rules for how you will progress from one stage to another. How long you spend in each stage depends on your particular situation. You can stay in a particular stage for years and never progress to the next stage. You can make adjustments in your life that bring you to a lower stage of burnout or eliminate it altogether. No matter what stage you’re in, it’s never too late to make adjustments that can improve your life.

honeymoon stage

This is the stage you are in when you start a new job or a new project. Regardless of what the new event is, you dive in wholeheartedly. You don’t mind the long hours, the extra demands on your attention and energy, or the learning curve required to succeed at this new challenge. You are happy and you love everything about this new opportunity, even if it is stressful. The downside of this stage is that you are completely overlooking the cost to your mind, emotions, and body of maintaining this high level of productivity. You could be close to running out of power and not even know it.

speed bump

After a while, you begin to notice that you are not functioning as before. Maybe you are a little tired. You may notice that you are making mistakes here and there. Start working even harder to maintain the same level of productivity you started with. A part of you recognizes that you need a break. However, if you don’t take that break, you’ll start to see some of the signs of burnout I talked about in my last article. The job, the project, the event will not be as exciting as it used to be and you may not be as excited about working on it as you used to be. As you work at it, you may find that you’re not as productive or effective as you used to be. You may have a hard time shutting your mind off. While you were in the honeymoon stage, you didn’t mind thinking about it all the time but now it’s negatively affecting your ability to sleep or put it behind you for fun. This can lead to compensatory behaviors such as overeating, drinking, or shopping to “reward” yourself for working so hard.

Chronic stress stage

This is the stage where you are no longer in denial that something is happening to you. You may or may not connect your symptoms to the new job, project, or event, but you no longer deny that you need help managing your symptoms. You may see a doctor to help you sleep or if you have headaches or stomach problems. Your problems probably aren’t limited to the physical realm, either. You may feel constantly irritated, worried, have difficulty concentrating, and feel overwhelmed. This is a critical stage. This is the stage when most people seek stress management in the form of a vacation, a new job, a new project, and/or medication. The danger is in finding yourself back in the honeymoon stage only to progress back to this stage. This cycle around the honeymoon stage, the downturn, the chronic stress stage, and vice versa can be avoided with regular stress management practice. As mentioned in The Art of Loving Life, awareness is the key to managing stress. Increasing your understanding of the stages of burnout and their particular effects on you can keep you from having to go through these stages over and over again. It can certainly prevent you from progressing to the next stage.

crisis stage

At this stage, you become a walking time bomb. The symptoms of the chronic stress stage have been exacerbated, but your efforts to cope with it are ineffective. You may be fired, be hospitalized, experience serious relationship problems, or cause significant problems for others. You may find yourself worrying about worst-case scenarios that can lead to extreme thoughts such as running away, committing suicide, filing for bankruptcy, and other fantasies of escaping your life.

exhaust stage

In this stage of exhaustion, exhaustion implies that the resources of your mind and body have been completely depleted. You have been hospitalized for a serious illness, attempted suicide or alcohol/drug addiction, or in jail due to a distorted attempt to escape your situation. Recovery from this stage is a long process. At this stage, it takes more than managing stress to recover, but recovery is possible with professional help.

Recovery is really possible at any stage. Regular stress management can help you maintain the productivity level of your honeymoon stage and reduce the likelihood that you will hit the doldrums stage or beyond. If you recognize that you are in a stage of chronic stress or burnout, seek professional help. Incorporating stress management, even at these stages, is helpful and can complement other forms of professional help, but stress management alone is not enough.

This article was adapted from The work stress connection by Robert Veninga and James Spradley and The art of loving life.