Category: Managing your mental health

1. Burnout - do you know what to look for?

   Posted on 8:00am Thursday 8th Jun 2023

   

   Burnout is a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion caused by prolonged stress and can affect anyone.  Burnout can impact your mental health and lead to depression, anxiety disorders and other serious conditions.  But how do you tell if you're experiencing it?  Here are five ways to tell if you might be experiencing burnout:

   1. Chronic Fatigue

   Do you feel tired all the time? Do you struggle getting out of bed in the morning? Chronic fatigue is one of the most common symptoms of burnout. It's not just about feeling sleepy; it's more like an overwhelming sense of exhaustion that doesn't go away even with rest.  You may spend the whole term just getting through until the next school holiday, desperate for that rest but even then that time away from the classroom doesn't seem to replenish you.  If y

   our fatigue seems unrelated to any underlying medical condition like sleep apnea or chronic fatigue syndrome and has been ongoing for weeks or months despite sleeping well each night then it may be related with burnout.

   2. Lack Of Motivation

   Do things that once excited you now seem tedious? Have tasks become mundane even when they were previously interesting? A lack of motivation is another sign that could indicate an individual is experiencing burnouts.There are moments where we lose interest in activities we once enjoyed due various reasons but if this continues over time then something serious than mere boredom should be considered as a possibility.

   3. Difficulty Concentrating

   Burnouts can disturb cognitive functions which leads us find concentration challenging.Even simple tasks require more effort,distractibility increases resulting in difficulty focusing on work.This often leads decreased productivity which further aggravates our mood.The brain finds itself unable comprehend information at the same pace as before which leads to frustration and agitation.

   4. Mood Swings

   Burnouts affect our behavior patterns leading us to have mood swings.We may find ourselves becoming more irritable,angry and anxious even when the situation does not warrant it.There are also instances of feeling down or depressed due to a lack of interest in daily activities that once brought joy leading us down a path of negativity.

   5. Feeling Detached From Work

   Over time, burnout can lead individuals become detached from their work.This means that they feel disconnected from projects they once enjoyed or colleagues with whom they found easy collaboration.The result is an environment where you no longer feel invested in your career journey resulting in negative outcomes such as low job satisfaction, decreased productivity etc.

   The Bottom Line

   If you're noticing any combination of these symptoms,it could be time take a step back and assess your mental health.Taking breaks, self-care routines such as exercise, meditation or therapy can help turn around the effects caused by burnout.Stress is common but managing it efficiently can prevent serious negative consequences.A healthy body needs both physical and mental well-being so if you suspect something isn't right seek assistance immediately.Speak with family,friends,colleagues who will support on this journey towards betterment .Don't let burnout rob you of your life!

    

2. How your stress is impacting your body

   Posted on 8:00am Monday 5th Jun 2023

   Everyone experiences stress at some point in life. Positive stress or pressure is normal to an extent, like the stress we feel when an upcoming deadline looms. It can focus our energy and be highly motivating, this stress feels like something we can cope with and some people feel it brings out the best in them. Negative stress on the other hand can cause anxiety, feelsexhausting, overwhelming and actually hinders performance especially when stress is experienced for a longer period of time resulting in burnout. It can not only affect our mental well-being, but it can also have an adverse effect on our physical health. Stress can come in many forms, such as financial strain, work pressure, relationship conflicts, and health problems. We feel stress when pressure or demands on us feel bigger than our perceived ability to cope. 

   Many of us are familiar with the feeling of stress and the impact it has on us mentally. Yet we may be unaware of the ways in which it can damage our bodies. Stress affects our body in numerous ways. When we experience stress, our body releases hormones such as adrenaline and cortisol, which can trigger our "fight or flight" response in our nervous system. As humans this is the state we have evolved to have, for cave people it was being able to run away from danger, literally for survival. It’s the reason that we can react seemingly without thinking by stepping back onto the pavement if we see a car coming towards us on a road. This “fight or flight” mode can lead to physical changes such as increased heart rate, blood pressure, and breathing rate. When we’re in this state our body is physically focusing all it’s energy on being ready for “fight or flight”, it causes our muscles to become more tense and our digestion to slow. It doesn’t matter if the stress at hand doesn’t require a physical response, this is how our bodies have evolved to manage stress. In the short term, these changes are helpful as they prepare our bodies to deal with the stressor at hand. However, our bodies are not designed to be in this state all the time. Considering the physical impacts long-term stress can impactnearly every system in our body, leading to various negative health outcomes. One common effect of long-term stress is cardiovascular problems, such as high blood pressure and heart disease. When we experience stress, our body releases stress hormones, which can cause our heart rate to increase, and blood vessels to constrict. If this occurs too frequently or for an extended period, it can cause long-term damage to the cardiovascular system. Another consequence of prolonged stress is digestive issues, such as digestive issues and acid reflux. Stress hormones that slow down the digestive process, causing bloating, nausea, and abdominal discomfort. Long-term stress can also lead to weight gain and an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes. Stress can also cause problems with our immune system, making us more susceptible to infections and diseases. When we are stressed, our body releases cortisol, which can weaken the immune system and impair its ability to fight off infections. This is also on top of the mental impacts of stress, leading to anxiety, depression, and burnout. It can impact our sleep, our ability to focus and make decisions, and can even contribute to substance abuse. 

   Therefore we can see that reducing stress can be important for both mental and physical health.  If we’re thinking of stress as pressure or demands feeling bigger than our perceived ability to cope we can close that gap and reduce stress. We can do this by either reducing the pressure or demands upon us (either actually reducing them or reducing the perception of them). Or by increasing our own perceived ability to cope with these demands. If we feel able to cope with demands we’re facing, we will therefore feel less stressed, reduce or turn off the “fight or flight” activation in our bodies and reduce the feeling of stress by switching our bodies into our “rest and digest” mode which causes our heart rate to slow, breathing to normalise, muscles to soften and digestion to increase.