These Mental Exhaustion Symptoms May Be a Sign of Burnout

Keep an Eye Out for These Mental Exhaustion Symptoms

Mental exhaustion symptoms are commonly ignored and can be dangerous for your overall health.

Life can be extremely hard sometimes. With work, school, social lives, and other variables, it's a wonder how many of us are even able to function sometimes. There comes a time when we may start to exhibit mental exhaustion symptoms that indicate we may be experiencing burnout. If you start to experience any of these symptoms, it's important to take note of them and figure out how to properly address them.

Physical symptoms

While these are mental exhaustion symptoms, many of those also include physical reactions to burnout. Everything on this list will vary from person to person, but some of the most reported physical symptoms of burnout include: chest pain, heart palpitations, shortness of breath, gastric issues, dizziness/fainting, and constant headaches. All of these should be assessed by a medical professional if you notice them becoming increasingly frequent.

Frequent sickness

Because your body is depleted of the proper rest and nutrients, your immune system becomes weaker and more vulnerable to infections, colds, the flu, and a lot of other nasty immune-related medical issues.

Exhaustion

There's tired… and then there's exhaustion. If there comes a time where you can manage to get your eight hours of sleep for, say, four days in a row but still feel exceedingly tired and unable to leave the bed, then this may be more than just being tired. If you feel like you're never well-rested no matter how many hours of sleep you get, then you may be suffering from exhaustion.

Anxiety

This varies a lot, especially if you're someone who already suffers from anxiety in general. If you notice that your anxiety spikes when involving work or school specifically (such as the idea of driving to work/school being terrifying to you), then that may be a sign that you’re reaching the point of burnout.

Loss of interest

Because you may be extra tired, sick, or full of anxiety, you may then begin to slowly stop participating in your hobbies. You may go to the gym a bit less, or stop picking up your guitar. If suddenly your hobby isn’t bringing you joy like it used to, then you need to quickly step up for intervention, because this is one of the more serious mental signs of burnout that you can experience.

Lack of appetite

An early sign of burnout might be skipped meals here and there, but more serious cases will involve your entire appetite vanishing altogether, and you may even begin to show signs of weight loss.

Insomnia

Every one of us has experienced a bit of trouble sleeping every now and then. Yet, persistent nightly ordeals of being unable to sleep, no matter how tired you are can mean you are experiencing severe insomnia, which is a clear indication of burnout.

Forgetfulness or impaired concentration

There are some early indications that can increasingly get worse when it comes to our focus. At first, you may seem a bit forgetful and have a few moments where focusing just feels harder. Eventually, you may get to a point where you can't get anything done and tasks are starting to pile up, which can then carry over to personal chores and errands at home, as well.

Depression

At first, you may feel sad or hopeless every now and then. You can also begin feeling guilt and worthlessness as a result of the previous feelings. At its worst, you may feel completely trapped and severely depressed. Thoughts of self-harm may even arise. If you ever get to this point, seek professional help immediately.

Feeling a bit overwhelmed? Be sure you are keeping tabs on these mental exhaustion symptoms so you can take the necessary steps to properly care for yourself. Be sure to reach out to a medical professional or therapist if you need help overcoming any of the symptoms listed above.