It’s a familiar feeling: the constant exhaustion, headaches, the pacing back-and-forth, the tension in your neck that just won’t ease. And most of us will often push through it, telling ourselves it’s just a rough patch. Sometimes, though, the ‘rough patch’ doesn’t pass; that might be burnout. 

Stress and burnout are not the same. Understanding the difference can be key not only to maintaining mental wellness, but to catching ourselves before we slip into emotional and physical exhaustion.

Let’s break it down.

What is Stress?

Stress is a physiological and psychological response to demands that exceed your perceived ability to cope. It’s not always bad; sometimes, it can sharpen your focus or push you to meet a deadline. In fact, the Yerkes-Dodson Law suggests that performance increases with stress up to a point, but beyond that, it sharply declines.

Acute stress might look like:

• Feeling temporarily overwhelmed by a task
  
• Sleep disturbances before a big event
  
• Irritability or anxiety that fluctuates depending on circumstances

In essence, it is important to remember that stress is circumstantial, fleeting, fluctuating, and is resolved when a situation subsides.  

What is Burnout?

Burnout is not just a lot of stress. It is a lasting state of emotional, mental, and physical exhaustion caused by prolonged, unmanaged stress. According to the World Health Organization (2019), burnout is characterized by three main dimensions:

1. Prolonged feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion
   
2. Increased mental distance from one’s job, or feelings of negativism or cynicism
   
3. Reduced professional efficacy
   

Unlike acute stress, burnout isn’t a sprint – it’s a slow burn. You don’t always see it coming, and when you do, you may already feel too drained to act.

Key Differences: Stress vs. Burnout

How to Recognize Where You Are

Take a pause and ask yourself:

• Do I feel physically and emotionally exhausted most of the time?
  
• Am I becoming more cynical or irritable at work—or in general?
  
• Do I feel like I’m no longer focused, no matter how hard I try?
  

If you answered yes to some of these, you may be beyond the stress zone and entering burnout territory. It’s beneficial to acknowledge this; recognition is the first act of recovery.

What Helps with Burnout

• Rest — not just sleep, but intentional disengagement from work
  
• Reconnection with people, passions, or values that feel nourishing
  
• Realignment — reflect on whether your environment aligns with your needs
  
• Professional support, especially if symptoms persist
  

And remember, healing from burnout is not just about individual effort—it may also require systemic change, like addressing toxic work cultures or unsustainable demands.

Whether you’re stressed, burnt out, or somewhere in between, you are not weak. You are responding to strain in the only way your nervous system knows how to. 

See you next week, we’ll talk a little bit about coping skills for burnout!