Thanks to the mental health pioneers of today, conversations in mental illness have grown to be more accepted in society. One topic that has garnered some interested is the study of depression and burnout. These two conditions are commonly seen in students and people in the work force, where the demands of their daily lives leave them feeling exhausted, lethargic, and dissatisfied. However, many people are unable to distinguish between the conditions’ symptoms, diagnosis, and treatments. This is where getting some more comparative information can be useful.
Burnout can often show as a decrease in efficiency or motivation at work.
Image Source: Kiyoshi Hijiki
An article under the National Library of Medicine describes burnout under an umbrella of three main categories: exhaustion, cynicism, and lack of professional efficacy. Exhaustion is a feeling of chronic fatigue, especially when tasked with performing at work. Cynicism is described as a lack of attachment towards co-workers and a dimmed sense of personal achievement. A lack of professional efficacy is demonstrated by decreased work efficiency. A diagnosis for burnout can be made by a medical professional or with help from the “Maslach Burnout Inventory” (MBI). The MBI is a questionnaire that can help deduce if a person is experiencing burnout; however, this is more used in research instead of a medical context. Since burnout is often tied to an external environmental stressor such as work and not a biological or psychological component, most treatments for it involve removing the affected person from the stressful stimulus. Examples include taking a medical leave from work, engaging in more fulfilling and relaxing personal hobbies, therapy, and etc.
These symptoms of depression include a few additional ones that grow in severity such as hopelessness, worthlessness, difficulty concentrating, trouble sleeping, suicidal ideation, and minor reoccurring physical aches (e.g. headaches). People who are diagnosed with depression won’t necessarily experience all of these symptoms; someone could experience only a few of them. Depression can be diagnosed by a licensed physician using the DSM-5. Depression can be caused by different biological, environmental, and psychological factors, all of which requires treatments to be diverse. These treatments vary heavily between individuals, but the most common include antidepressant medications, different forms of psychotherapy, and brain stimulation therapies, which use electric pulses to mitigate depressive symptoms.
Depression and burnout overlap in a common cause: most people experiencing either put the blame on their jobs. They also have similar symptoms, encompassed by being in a generally emotionally exhaustive state. Some researchers even hypothesize that burnout is a preemptive risk factor of depression, making it a possible sign of its development. Nonetheless, while similar, the National Library of Medicine’s study found that these are distinct from each other.
This information can be useful if you think you’re dealing with any of these symptoms, but it’s always best to consult a medical professional to receive a diagnosis.
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