The Stages of Burnout & Burnout Recovery Stages

Oct 23

Stages of burnout & Burnout Recovvery Sages: Your Roadmap to Recover from Burnout

Burnout recovery involves recognizing the stages of burnout, understanding burnout recovery, and making physical and mental changes to prevent burnout again. This guide offers practical advice for recovering from burnout and preventing burnout.

What Is Burnout? Understanding the Root Causes

Burnout is a level of exhaustion that can not be solved in one weekend or with your usual self-care routine. Burnout is a mental, physical, and emotional exhaustion caused by stress and work. To learn about all four types of burnout click here. Burnout often makes you feel you cannot cope with your daily tasks —or even life in general.

Root causes of burnout:

Constant stress
Social pressures
Pushing yourself to meet unrealistic expectations, while sacrificing your well-being.
Long working hours
Lack of work-life balance
Societal ideals of success and productivity

Signs of Burnout to Look Out For

It's important to diagnose the signs and symptoms of burnout early. Early intervention can help with recovering from burnout. Your burnout recovery timeline can be drastically reduced if you can spot the signs and stop burnout in its tracks.

Understand that burnout can manifest in physical, mental, and emotional ways. So understanding all the signs of burnout can help you through your burnout recovery stages.

Signs of Burnout to look out for:

Chronic Illness
Insomnia
Anxiety
Concentration Issues
Memory Problems

For a full list of Burnout signs click here.

The Stages of Burnout

Understanding the stages of burnout can help you pinpoint where you are in the burnout process and develop a targeted recovery plan. There are two models that outline burnout by Herbert Freudenberger.

Burnout typically progresses through five stages:

5 Stages of Burnout

The honeymoon phase is characterized by high energy and enthusiasm, but hidden stressors can lead to burnout if not addressed.
Onset of stress includes early signs of anxiety and overwhelm as stress begins to take its toll.
Chronic stress is marked by persistent exhaustion and reduced performance as stress becomes a constant presence.
Full burnout occurs when emotional detachment and health decline become apparent.
Habitual burnout represents the long-term impact on health and lifestyle if burnout is not addressed.

Herbert Freudenberger goes deeper and breaks down the 5 stages further into 12 stages of burnout:

12 Stages of Burnout

The compulsion to prove oneself: A need to prove something fuels your ambition, turning work into an obsession.
Working harder: You set high expectations and take on too much to fit in or impress others.
Neglecting your needs: Work takes over, leaving no time for friends, sleep, or self-care.
Displacement of conflicts: You sense something’s wrong but can’t figure out the cause, leading to stress and physical symptoms.
Revision of values: Work becomes your main focus, pushing aside hobbies, relationships, and joy.
Denial of emerging problems: You get irritable, avoid socializing, and blame stress on workload.
Withdrawal: Social contact fades, and you turn to isolation or substances for relief.
Obvious behavioral changes: People around you notice major changes in your behavior.
Depersonalization: You stop seeing value in yourself or others, running on autopilot.
Inner emptiness: You feel hollow and overindulge in food, sex, or other activities to fill the void.
Depression: You feel exhausted, hopeless, and believe life has no meaning.
Burnout syndrome: You collapse emotionally and physically, needing urgent help.

It’s okay if your burnout does not follow these stages exactly. Instead, consider which stages resonate with you most. Then move on to the burnout recovery stages below.

Burnout Recovery Stages: A Step-by-Step Process

The 12 stages of burnout give insight into how to recover from burnout. By, simply, reversing all the stages, you can unlock a path to solving your burnout.

Loving yourself As Is: You feel secure in who you are and don’t need to prove anything to others.
Human-centered productivity: You set realistic expectations and focus on meaningful tasks without disregarding your health, relationships, or self-care.
Prioritizing your health: You make time for rest, relationships, and self-care alongside your work.
Journal through conflicts: You stay aware of stress triggers and reflect on problems before they grow.
Set values: Your life has a healthy mix of productivity, hobbies, and relationships that align with your core values.
Acknowledge systemic issues at play: You recognize when you’re stressed and seek support or rest while understanding external factors.
Staying connected: You maintain social connections and find joy in spending time with others.
Positive behavioral changes: You create a balanced lifestyle, focused on growth and appreciating the present.
Re-learn who you are: You appreciate your worth and connect with others on a deeper level.
Personal fulfillment: You feel content and find joy in meaningful activities without overindulging.
Emotional resilience: You feel hopeful and find meaning in life, even when challenges arise.
Thriving Energy: You care for your physical and emotional health, using sustainable habits to stay strong and balanced.

We have all seen the advice on getting better sleep, drinking water, and working out. ALL of which you should be doing to recover from burnout. However, the 12 recovery stages above provide more nuisance as you go through your burnout recovery journal.

Strategies for Burnout Recovery: What Actually Works

What works for you and your burnout will depend on experimentation. The best strategy for getting through burnout is to: not give up. Treat your burnout like a patient, where you try every healing protocol possible to get rid of burnout and keep it away.

Common science-backed burnout recovery strategies are:

Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT)
Mindfulness and meditation
Physical activity

Education is also important in recovering from burnout. Books like “Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle” by Emily Nagoski PhD and Amelia Nagoski can help you understand burnout and recover quicker.

How Long Does It Take to Recover from Burnout? Burnout Recovery Timeline

Recovery from burnout is a gradual process that varies from person to person. Factors affecting the recovery timeline include the severity of burnout, individual coping mechanisms, and the availability of support networks. It's important to set realistic expectations for your recovery and be patient with yourself.

Staying motivated during slow progress can be challenging, but focusing on small, incremental improvements can help. Remember that recovery is not linear, and setbacks are a natural part of the process. Celebrate each milestone, no matter how small, as a sign of progress.

The burnout recovery timeline can vary widely, from a few weeks to several years, depending on the severity, support, and lifestyle of the individual.

Severity:
- Mild burnout can often be resolved in a few weeks.
- Severe burnout may require six months or more to heal.
Duration of Burnout:
- The longer burnout has been present, the more time it generally takes to recover fully.
Support System:
- Early and consistent support can significantly shorten the recovery time, while lack of support may prolong it.
Underlying Causes:
- Burnout from traumatic sources like harassment often needs extended recovery due to the deep emotional impact.
Lifestyle and Self-Care:
- A balanced lifestyle with regular self-care can speed up recovery, while poor lifestyle choices can lengthen it.

Burnout Recovery Tips:

Take breaks: Step away from work and focus on rest.
Set boundaries: Limit responsibilities to prevent further burnout.
Seek professional help: Therapy can provide valuable coping strategies.

By addressing these factors, most individuals find improvement within a few weeks to several months.

Burnout Recovery Stages FAQs

Can you fully recover from burnout?

Yes, it is possible to fully recover from burnout with the right support and lifestyle changes. Recovery involves addressing the underlying causes of burnout and developing healthy coping mechanisms.

How do you know if burnout is coming back?

Stress is a major early warning for Burnout. Stress is unavoidable but it's important to have ways to manage your day-to-day stress. By managing daily stress well, you can prevent burnout from ever coming back. Stress is the first red flag for burnout and it's important to stay vigilant when it comes to your health and self-care.

Conclusion

Burnout recovery is a personal journey with its own timeline. By understanding the stages of burnout and implementing custom recovery strategies, you can regain balance and well-being in your life. Remember that recovery is not a one-time event but an ongoing commitment to self-care and growth.