Recent Guardian article on Burnout
How burnout became a sinister and insidious epidemic
The Guardian 21st February 2018
Sara Cox, who had to give up her career. ‘It felt like every day I was walking through thick mud.’ Photograph: Christopher Thomond for the Guardian
This significant article highlights well the “iceberg” effect in mental health where so much for so many is hidden under the surface and emerges with increases of stress over time. Describing burnout as “a vital exhaustion” spoke powerfully to me about the potency of the condition. You can read the article here:
Asking ourselves, in any workplace or even in our homes and with our families, what factors could be addressed to help avoid worsening mental health and the conditions that produce burnout, would be good questions to pose I think. I like that the article includes attitudes and environmental factors that were found to be protective; a sense of purpose, a sense of belonging, autonomy but with clarity and presence!
Creating that environment is a challenge. So is enabling an atmosphere where it is normal and easy for individuals to talk about mental health. To me that has to be another protective factor. This connects with our previous blogs on the Time to Talk day and keeping a debate going around that approach in society generally to mental health that I mentioned in my welcome blog. Let us look at what we can do ourselves to improve that environment, keep the awareness raised out there and continue the conversation.
Please feel free to join the discussion by commenting and let us know what you think.