Unless you benefit from annual winter breaks in the sun, February is not necessarily a month we look forward to here in the UK. The long-range Met Office forecast invariably predicts cold and wet weather. It is still dark when you get up, the days are short and summer seems light-years away.
Add the usual pressures and stresses of a post-Christmas hangover, especially when the credit card bills arrive, and it’s easy at this time of year to run out of emotional energy.
For most of us, the weather and time of year just makes us feel low, vulnerable to colds or irritable. For some it may become clinical. Whatever you call it … depression, “burnout”, or “the blahs”… it is an inescapable warning light that something is out of balance in our lives.
Burnout is associated with situations that can hit us ay any time of year in which we feel:
- overworked
- underappreciated
- confused about expectations and priorities
- concerned about job security
- overcommitted with responsibilities
- resentful about duties that are not commensurate with pay
Burnout can occur when we feel we are unable to meet constant demands, and we become increasingly overwhelmed and depleted of energy. Debilitating sadness, anger or indifference can set in. The modern work-place is notorious for exacerbating the causes of burnout.
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