Fellow burn-out, here. For about 3/4 years, I have noticed a massive increase in my Depression and Generalized Anxiety Disorder. My wife has also noticed my personality changes that have occured, and my general loss of interest in things that used to bring me joy.
I was diagnosed with Depression and GAD in 2000 after a fairly long and drawn out process that told me something I already knew. In the nearly 25 since, I have been hyperaware of the impact exteenal factors have on my conditions and over-all state of being.
In the event that it helps anyone, even a single person reading this, here is what I have learned:
1. It's okay to walk away from a toxic work environment. I have done a lot of work in factories over the years. Between the harsh conditions, unrealistic expectations and juvenile masculinity, I was getting mentally beat to a pulp because I thought I was supposed to uphold the status quo in those places. The status quo, as it turns out, is set by people who are more miserable than you and want to drag you to Hell with them. Let them go and walk away. Being driven to the point of drug abuse (or worse) is not worth any paycheck.
2. You are greater than the sum of your parts. You are not your job, your hobbies, your clothes, etc, but an amalgamation of all those things that is not necessarily unique, but a whole and contributing person, and that cannot be taken from you unless YOU allow it to be.
3. Avoid seeking reason for everything outside your control. The sooner you accept the Universe has no plan that you can comprehend, the better. It is a chaotic, irrational place from our tiny perspective and not a useful line of inquiry. Instead, your energies can be turned to your reason for your own actions and reactions, the only things you can really control.
4. Be firm but fair with self-honesty. Your faults are also opprtunities to improve, not road blocks. This will ne exceptionally difficult, but your strengths will see you through. My personal rule is to never stop tryinh to ne better than I was yesterday, for falling stagnant is no different than being dead.
5. Leave your spaces better than you found them...not just for other people, but also for yourself. When we take care of our immediate environments, we tend to feel more focused and energized. My depression stints are often followed by house-cleaning, and it surprises me every single time how cluttered and disoriented I allowed things to get.
I believe people with Anxiety and Depression are more prone to burnout than others, and in the societies that tend to demand more of us than we can give, be it as workers, lovers, consumers or citizens, we are a particularly vulnerable population. That means we must fight harder.
My burnout has taken me to dark, dark places, and there are lights that keep me going. Right now, I am mustering what evergy I can to help my son learn to cope with these things while teaching myself new skills so I can make a move into a career that will be more rewarding and inline with my personal ethos.
What works for you? What helps with burnout, and the anxiety/depression that tends to come with it?