The story of Querry, a world-famous architect, who, because he does not find pleasure in life or the pleasures of art, decides to take a trip to Africa, specifically, to a leper colony, is the plot of A Burnout Case —in Spanish: a finished case—by the English writer Graham Greene, one of those eternal candidates for the Nobel Prize for Literature. Querry is diagnosed by Dr. Colin, to what would be the mental equivalent of “a burnt-out case” —literally, “a burned case”—; that is, “a leper mutilated by disease and amputation.” The book, published in 1961, is one of the most important titles in the extensive bibliography of the author of The power and the glorywho, without intending to, gave his name to a syndrome suffered by millions of people around the world.
Burnout Syndrome, also known as professional burnout syndrome, emotional overload or fatigue at work, was declared in 2000 by the World Health Organization (WHO), as an occupational risk factor, due to its capacity to affect the quality of life, mental health and even the existence of the individual who suffers it. The most accepted definition of this pathology is that of C. Maslach, who describes it as “an inadequate way of coping with chronic stress, whose main features are emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and decreased personal performance.” For his part, Pedro Gil-Monte defines it as: “a response to chronic work stress, made up of negative attitudes and feelings towards the people with whom one works and towards one’s own professional role, as well as the experience of being exhausted” … Have you ever felt like this?
As of January 1 this year, entered into force the latest revision of the WHO International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11), and Burnout Syndrome (BS) has come to be considered a disease, made up of three fundamental elements: “lack of energy or exhaustion”; “increased mental distance, or negative or cynical feelings about work”; and a “feeling of ineffectiveness and lack of accomplishment.” This will help your best prevention, diagnosis and treatment.
To get an idea of the magnitude of the problem, the SB It is considered an influential factor in episodes of stress and anxiety, and the updated global bill for this cause recognizes the loss of 12,000 million working days per year and an economic cost of US$1 trillion due to the impact on productivity, according to warn the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Labor Organization (ILO). Secondly, A study in Paraguay found that almost 9 out of 10 doctors surveyed presented it, exactly 88.1% of the participants.
At the same time, The report Women in the Workplace 2021 (Women in the workplace 2021), from the firm Mckinsey & Company, which investigated this topic, referring to the gender issue, showed that 42% of women worldwide suffer from burnout compared to 35% of men. On the other hand, in Latin America, a study established that Mexico is the first country in the world in burnout, given that 75% of its population suffers from it, surpassing China (73%) and the United States (59%).
Among the risk factors for suffering from it are personal components, such as age (it is more frequent in young people); gender (women tend to handle stress better but are more overworked); family variables (family harmony and stability help maintain the necessary balance to face conflictive situations); personality (extremely competitive, impatient, hyper-demanding and perfectionist personalities are often more affected).
Added to the above is inadequate professional training with excessive theoretical knowledge, little training in practical activities and/or “lack of learning emotional self-control techniques”… Apparently, the riskiest combination would be: being young, having children, working more than 60 hours a week. Other elements that significantly increase the danger are: “Receiving many irregular calls (2 or more nights during the week)” and “Increasing the workload to pay debts”. Has it happened to you?
It is important to recognize the symptoms of SB, among them are: feeling constantly tired; not harboring feelings of commitment with the activities that we carry out in the labor framework or with those of other people; thinking that everything we do is useless and fails to fulfill us professionally. To these must be added a series of signs that can put us on the track, such as: constant headaches, increased blood pressure, tachycardia, body sweating, nervous tics, hair loss, lower efficiency of the immune system that translates in getting sick frequently, irregular menses, changes in bowel habits due to diarrhea or constipation, insomnia… There are also some psychological signs such as difficulty concentrating, increased errors, less ability to make decisions, anxiety, excessive worry… In some cases, reduced sexual desire, decreased self-esteem and constant mood swings are observed, which, if not treated in time, can cause depression and emotional instability.
These signs and symptoms can be presented gradually or repeat itself cyclically over time. In terms of intensity, SB is classified into four levels ranging from mild, characterized by vague complaints, tiredness and difficulty getting up in the morning; moderate, in which signs of cynicism, isolation, suspicion usually appear…; severe, when there is a marked slowdown when doing work, self-medication with psychoactive drugs, absenteeism, alcohol or drug abuse; in extreme cases, very marked isolation, psychiatric symptoms and, occasionally, suicides have been seen. That is why we must be very vigilant.
For the diagnosis of BS there are instruments that evaluate the fundamental components of the syndrome, but they must be handled by experts. These will determine the existence and magnitude of the condition, which may sometimes require psychiatric treatment. However, there are a number of tips that could help you prevent this disease:
- Mentally detach yourself from your work: It is important, at the end of the day, to establish a routine to move from “work mode” to personal life.
- say no: Accepting new challenges and performing challenging tasks is important in professional development, but it is also important to know our limits and not exceed them all the time.
- Clearly state your goals: This helps us stay focused and find inspiration at work.
- Improve your work environment: Not only can work overwhelm us, but it can also be done in a stressful environment, so it is important to spend time organizing it, which includes interpersonal relationships.
- Do activities you are passionate about: When work becomes stressful, doing different activities that generate pleasure, particularly hobbies, can be very helpful because they help to disconnect from worries and keep the mind and body stimulated.
- Monitor your emotional state: We don’t usually spend time figuring out how we’re feeling, and that can fuel SB, especially if we’re not aware of it in the early days.
- Practice self-care: Performing physical exercises frequently, eating a healthy diet, respecting sleep and rest schedules, avoiding toxic habits… is essential to stay mentally healthy.
- Log out: Every day we receive an avalanche of information, and sometimes it is necessary to turn off the devices, isolate ourselves from the world and simply enjoy.
- Strengthen your social relationships: It is important to have a family environment and friends to help us get through difficult and stressful times, and with whom to share at leisure.
- Don’t be afraid to ask for help: Problems such as Burnout may seem simple but they have to do with complex mental mechanisms, habits and aspirations, it is not easy to rediscover balance when it has been lost without the help of professionals.
