Do not ignore the warning signs

There is nothing heroic about burnout. It’s merely the end product of the challenges that many suffer from, and signals that it’s time for change, writes Greg Barns

THE warning signs are there. Dreading waking up, the panic attacks during the daylight hours, tasks that were once manageable become mountains too treacherous to climb, and, worst of all, the never-shifting grey clouds. Then the crash. Rock bottom. Burnout.

The great American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald, describing his own burnout in his short story The Crack-Up, observed; “Of course all life is a process of breaking down, but the blows that do the dramatic side of the work – the big sudden blows that come, or seem to come, from outside.”

The world that you once controlled, or thought you did, has become a dangerous place that has you in its sights day in and day out. Paranoia, it’s called.

You have to bring it to a head at some point, even the stoic has to do that to avoid the drowning. The psychiatrist, the psychologist, the loved ones all waiting to hear you. So there is an upside.

It was in 1974 that German analyst Herbert Freudenberger described being burnt out as “becoming exhausted by making excessive demands on energy, strength, or resources” in the workplace. But as is often the case in the contested world of research into the emotions and the mind, there is a contest over the phenomenon. In 2017 two German researchers, Linda Heinemann and Torsten Heinemann, observed: “This lack of clarity in medicine and psychology does not seem to have affected the popularity and relevance of the diagnosis in today’s neoliberal society.”

But to quote the former US Supreme Court justice Potter Stewart when confronted with what constitutes “obscenity’’: “I know it when I see it.”

The trick is to understand that burnout might be you in extremis. You are driven, or can’t say no, or are imbued with a work ethic that equates to short hours and taking breaks as character flaws.

Reflecting on the world you inhabit and think you thrive in, because when it’s good you are on a high, is hard. A lifetime, or at least since you embarked on the work journey however many years ago, of repeating the same pattern in your mind and your body is an exercise in serious hard-wiring. Ripping it up and replacing it is nearly impossible because it’s you. Having said that, there are some remarkable people who give up the addiction and head to gentler and softer landing spaces.

So what’s to do when the realisation that enough is enough scares you? In other words, unlike the last time you crashed and simply declared yourself better and plunged back into the turbulence to get another fix, this time it’s different. That’s the primary and most important insight.

From that comes a chance to adjust that hard-wiring. This is unique to each of us of course because, to be trite for a moment, no one is the same.

But here are some ideas to beat the beast. Meditation, mindfulness, or just sitting and breathing. For three minutes or an hour. Whatever it takes. There are some who, at the end of a stressful meeting, will shut the door and sit quietly to allow their mind and emotions to settle.

Try yoga. It forces you to breathe, and to focus on the moment. The final Savasana, that last few minutes of a session when you lie on your back, is a magical experience where you can feel transported to serenity.

For some running is deeply meditative. As SaudiAmerican runner Sarah Attar puts it: “I allow my run to become a space for reflection, exploration and mindfulness, to connect with the world around me.”

Listen to Mozart’s sublime Symphony 38, known as the Prague, recorded last year by the 94-year-old Swedish conductor Herbert Blomstedt. As the music courses through your veins, wonder at the work/life balance that enables one in the autumn years of their life to be as brilliant as that musician. Creativity is a joy. Visit an art gallery, wander around stellar architecture and you cannot help but feel refreshed.

Whatever it takes, emerge from the tears and the bleakness and draw a line in the sand. You don’t get to have unlimited mental health crashes in life. And particularly if you have been living with the “black dog’’, as Winston Churchill called the depression he lived with for years. Every crash gets harder to emerge from and the road back longer.

Google it and you will find any number of tips and stories on how to come back from burnout, some very helpful, practical and common-sense, others more esoteric. But it’s your journey, so do it your way. But whatever you do remember that burnout is not compulsory. There is nothing heroic about it. Burnout is not a final destination, it is an end product of a life that must change.

Hobart barrister Greg Barns is a human rights lawyer who has advised state and federal Liberal governments.

If this story has raised any concerns for you or somebody you know, call Beyond Blue on 1300 224 636 or Lifeline, 13 11 14.

You don’t get to have unlimited mental health crashes in life. And particularly if you have been living with the ‘black dog’, as Winston Churchill called the depression he lived years. with for Every crash gets to harder emerge from and the road back longer.