By Sonia Lal Gupta

New Delhi, May 29 (IANSlife): "If only I could have another vacation to the mountains, I dont feel I could carry this much longer." Do you catch yourself saying this very often?

Symptoms of burn out and unmanaged stress at the workplace can lead to:

* Feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion

* Increased mental distance from one's job, or feelings of negativism or cynicism related to one's job

* Reduced professional efficacy

Should I Jump Ship if I'm Burnt Out?

Sitting back and taking a wider look can help you reset your priorities. A burnout can either be caused from your own relationship with your job, or the simple fact that the job just doesn't suit your personal nature.

Before quitting, ask yourself if you can change how you relate with my job. Is it your own mismanagement of stress which is causing the problems?

Reassess

You might want to look into potential reasons to then formulate a solution:

* Lack of control

* Unclear job expectations

* Dysfunctional workplace dynamics

* Extremes of activity

* Lack of social support

* Work-life imbalance

If you can spot clear reasons, try to have a conversation with someone and try to bring change rather than continuing to deal with the burnout.

Over time, burnout can lead to:

* Excessive stress

* Fatigue

* Insomnia

* Sadness, anger or irritability

* Alcohol or substance misuse

* Heart disease

* High blood pressure

* Type 2 diabetes

* Vulnerability to illnesses

Stress Management

In many cases, when we start to relax, we find that some problems are not stressful but challenging and enjoyable.

Relaxation makes a big difference.

* Seek social support

* Take frequent breaks

* Get adequate sleep everyday

* Get adequate exercise everyday

* Practice mindfulness, especially when you start to feel the burnout

* Take a vacation if you really want it!

* Seek professional help if you need

When to Quit?

If there is no way that the job can provide a relaxing work atmosphere, you might want to start evaluating your options.

Know the consequences of quitting, and weigh them against already existing or potential health problems.

Saying 'no' when needed can be one of the most powerful gifts to our own selves.

One of the most important things that we, as individuals, should do is to understand that we have put ourselves in tricky positions. When we start to take responsibility of our existence, we can start to take active action rather than be stuck in a victim mentality.

References:

World Health Organization, 'Burn-out an "occupational phenomenon": International Classification of Diseases', official WHO website (accessed on 11th June, 2020)

US National Library of Medicine, 'Depression: What is burnout?', official NCBI website (accessed on 11th June, 2020)

Mayo Clinic, 'Job burnout: How to spot it and take action', official website (accessed on 11th June, 2020)

(Sonia Lal Gupta, MD, MBA, FACP, Sr Consultant Neurologist. IANSlife can be contacted at IANSlife@ians.in)