I would be careful with one statement here though “The official definition of burnout is “physical or mental collapse caused by overwork or stress”. That kind of implies that a person can’t work when burnt out, but that’s not my experience- ceasing work when you’re burnt out is a privilege.”
I think when reading this, it’s easy to come away with the impression that a burnout is actually not so bad. While it may not be so bad in some cases, it can be very severe in others, so severe that you’re literally physically unable to work—sometimes for years.
There are recent studies showing that a burnout can lead to changes in the anatomy and functioning of the brain, e.g. reduced connectivity between different areas of the brain, an enlarged amygdala, and a thinned prefrontal cortex, which is the part responsible for cognitive functioning, meaning that even if you try really hard, you just cannot function as well as you used to (or at all).
I had a burnout myself several years ago and I felt like I wasn’t able to access some parts of my brain and couldn’t do some things that I can normally do (e.g. write a text, do calculations, or concentrate for more than a minute). It took me more than 6 months to feel that I restored my full cognitive capacity.
Thank you for this article, very interesting!
I would be careful with one statement here though “The official definition of burnout is “physical or mental collapse caused by overwork or stress”. That kind of implies that a person can’t work when burnt out, but that’s not my experience- ceasing work when you’re burnt out is a privilege.”
I think when reading this, it’s easy to come away with the impression that a burnout is actually not so bad. While it may not be so bad in some cases, it can be very severe in others, so severe that you’re literally physically unable to work—sometimes for years.
There are recent studies showing that a burnout can lead to changes in the anatomy and functioning of the brain, e.g. reduced connectivity between different areas of the brain, an enlarged amygdala, and a thinned prefrontal cortex, which is the part responsible for cognitive functioning, meaning that even if you try really hard, you just cannot function as well as you used to (or at all).
I had a burnout myself several years ago and I felt like I wasn’t able to access some parts of my brain and couldn’t do some things that I can normally do (e.g. write a text, do calculations, or concentrate for more than a minute). It took me more than 6 months to feel that I restored my full cognitive capacity.