Research Paper

"Burnout"

Prairie Bible College
PA 320 - Counselling 2

By Christian Mogler
Date: 21th April 2008

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Introduction

Introduction: 4
1. Definition 4
2. Manifestation 5
2.1. Mental: 5
2.2. Physical: 5
2.3. Spiritual: 6
2.4. Biblical examples of burnout: 7
2.5. What does Burnout look like practically? 7
3. What Causes Burnout? 8
3.1. General 8
3.1.1. Feeling overwhelmed: 8
3.1.2. Loss of hope: 8
3.1.3 The role of stress: 9
3.1.3.1. How stress works: 10
3.2. Society 11
3.3. Job 12
3.3.1. Specific professionals: 12
3.3.1.1. Caregiver burnout: 13
3.3.1.2. MINISTER BURNOUT 13
3.3.1.2.2. Ministry burnout: 14
3.3.2. What causes job-burnouts? 16
3.3.2.1. Lack of Recognition: 16
3.3.2.2. Big Consequences for Failure: 16
3.3.2.3. High-Stress Times with No "Down-times": 16
3.3.2.4. Impossible Requirements: 17
3.3.2.5. Unclear Requirements: 17
3.3.2.6. Poor Fit for the Job: 17
3.3.2.7. Lack of Belief in What You Do: 17
3.3.2.8. Shift work: 17
3.3.2.9. Bad Leadership: 17
3.4. Lifestyle 18
3.4.1. Too Much Work With Little Balance: 18
3.4.2. No Help or Supportive Resources: 19
3.4.3. Too Little Social Support: 19
3.4.4. Too Little Sleep: 19

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3.4.5. Too Little Time Off: 20
3.4.6. No time for hobbies: 20
3.5. Personality 20
3.5.1. Obsessive compulsive personality (OCPD): 20
3.5.1.1 Type-A personality (TAP): 23
3.5.1.1.1 Type-A personality ­ its effects: 23
3.5.1.2. The workaholic ­ most likely candidate. 24
3.5.1.2.1 Symptoms of Workaholism: 25
3.5.1.2.2. The reasons for workaholism: 25
3.5.1.2.3. Solution: 26
3.5.1.3 Workaholism combined with Type-A personality 27
3.5.2. Pessimism: 29
3.5.3. Idealism/Perfectionism: 29
3.5.4. Playing God-syndrome: 30
3.5.5. People Pleaser: 30
3.5.6. Others 30
3.5.6.1. Unfulfilled expectations: 30
3.5.6.2. Bitterness: 31
3.5.6.3. Burnout as a virtue 32
3.5.6.4. Other reasons 32
4. Who has a burnout? 33
5. How to get back on track: 34
5.1. Restoring Hope: 34
5.2. After recovering burnout 37
6. Prevention 37
6.1. Get proper exercise, have a healthy diet and enough sleep 37
6.2. Carrying God′s yoke, not my own: 38
6.3. Forgive: 38
6.4. Carry each other′s burden: 38
6.5. Know who you are in Christ ­ get your thinking right: 39
6.6. Look at the true meaning of life: 39
6.7. Having the right perspective: 39
6.8. Join a small support/prayer group 40
6.9. Prioritize: 40
6.10. Watch perfectionist tendencies: 40
6.11. Take regular time off: 40
6.12. Relax. 40
6.13. Have fun! 41
6.14. Change 41
6.15. Know the warning signs: 41

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Conclusion 42
Bibliography 43
Books: 43
Internet: 43

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Introduction:
Burnout, a term heard with increasing frequency these days, is becoming a prominent fact of life in the fast-paced and stress-filled 21st century. People in all walks of life are experiencing burnout, and many end up losing their jobs, their health, and sometimes their families because of it. Some even commit suicide as a way of escape. Since almost everybody will experience burnout to a certain degree in some stage of life, one may ask what exactly burnout is, what the warning signs are, how to deal with it and what can be done in order to prevent it. The aim of this paper is to answer those questions with a special emphasis on workaholic and `Type A′ personality burnout, since those people are most prone to the experience it.
1. Definition
Dr. Wendell Friest says that "the word `burnout′ is borrowed from rocketry science and refers to the point at which the fuel of a missile is completely expended."1 Frank Minirth suggest that "burnout is, when one′s attitude becomes `a job is a job is a job;′ a depletion of energy and a feeling of being overwhelmed by others′ problems; a syndrome of emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and reduced personal
accomplishment that can occur among individuals who do `people work′ of some kind."2
It is often described as a loss of enthusiasm, energy, idealism, perspective, and purpose. It can be viewed as a state of mental, physical, and spiritual exhaustion brought on by excessive and prolonged stress.3 Burnout is actually a vicious cycle, because the desire to

^{1 Esther Schubert, What Missionaries Need to Know About Burnout and Depression, (New Castle: Olive Branch Publications, 1993), 3
2 Frank Minirth, Don Hawkins, Paul Meier, Richard Flournoy. How to beat Burnout. (Chicago: Moody Press, 1986), 14
3 Ibid.. 15}

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minimize any interpersonal contact is coupled with a feeling of emotional exhaustion and results in a reduction in personal accomplishment. A feeling of diminishing accomplishment leads to stronger feelings of personal inadequacy, which further reduces accomplishment.4 This is the cycle of burnout, a cycle many people experience.
2. Manifestation
Minirith suggest three burnout areas:
2.1. Mental: Burnout shows up mentally in the form of a feeling of disillusionment or failure as a person or worker. Signs of anger, cynicism, negativism, or increased irritability spring up. Burnout victims may feel frustrated by a sense of helplessness, hopelessness, or self-doubt, which then may lead to depression. Another common sign is guilt ­false guilt over trying to be overly responsible or committed, a feeling of not doing something perfectly or well enough. Other symptoms of mental/r emotional burnout include apathy, difficulty concentrating or paying attention, decreased self-esteem, feelings of disenchantment, disillusionment, disorientation, or confusion.5
2.2. Physical: Continued stress and burnout may bring on backaches, neck aches, headaches, migraines, insomnia, loss of appetite (or a never-satisfied appetite), ulcers, high blood pressure, constant colds, digestive problems, allergies, or in the most severe forms of continuing stress and burnout, heart attacks and strokes. In many people, unrelieved, unresolved tension and stress result in their turning to alcohol or drugs for temporary relief. The decreased energy and fatigue symptomatic of drugs tend to worsen

^{4 Ibid., 15
5 Ibid., 19-20}

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an already burnout-out feeling.6 Brooks R. Faulkner adds to this list exhaustion and sexual dysfunction.7
2.3. Spiritual: Some people experience spiritual exhaustion with burnout. Such individuals seem to have lost perspective and have failed to recognize their own limits. They usually experience a gradually increasing feeling that God is powerless and that they themselves are the only ones with the power to help in their current situation. Without realizing what they are doing, they refuse ­consciously or unconsciously- to rely on God′s power and try to play God themselves. Then as time passes, they realize that their own power, or energies, are not enough either. They feel like giving up, believing that others, including God, have given up on them.8 One spiritual warning sign for burn out is the increasing sense of self-effort rather than trusting God or even others′ God given abilities in particular circumstances. Those Christians may start giving more lip service to their trust in God in order to cover up their decreased dependence on him9 However, the signs of burnout tend to be more mental rather than physical. They can include feelings of:10 [...]