The Truth about Burnout and PTSD 

As of 2025, an estimated 66% of the American workforce is experiencing burnout in their careers. According to recent information, women are more likely to experience burnout than men, and the average person experiences some kind of burnout before the age of twenty-five.

Due to its recent popularity, even the term “burnout” has become a buzzword word which might have caused it to lose meaning. So, what is burnout? How do you know if you are experiencing it, and what can be done about it?

The Truth about Burnout

Burnout is often used as a sanitized description of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). PTSD is a mental health condition caused by being exposed to traumas like war, genocide, or a global disaster.

However, people also experience PTSD from experiencing far more common traumas like crippling workloads, demanding schedules, insurmountable debt, and toxic home or work environments. Few people will readily accept that what they are experiencing is PTSD, but often that is the best description of their mental health state.

It starts to make sense once you realize that you are pouring all of your time, energy, and emotional resources into your jobs, schools, or difficult relationships. Sometimes, even when you are doing more enjoyable things like hobbies and socializing, you might get to the point where you are running on empty. However, you do not have to stay there, but it does take intentionality.

Identification

It’s hard to find a balance when it feels like life is crashing down, and that you are the only thing that keeps disaster at bay. Living under these kinds of stressful conditions forces your nervous system into survival mode. Living in this state can cause issues that can be harmful to us.

It can get to the point where you no longer experience enjoyment, safety, peace, or rest because you simply don’t have time for any of that. All your energy is going toward diverting some kind of impending doom. To deal with burnout and PTSD, you must begin by asking yourself some searching questions. Consider the following questions and write out your responses:

How do you know if you are experiencing burnout?

Everyone’s experience will be different; however, there are common things that can help you identify it. Your body tends to react to stress long before your conscious mind does. You might have been losing sleep, started eating less or more, or experiencing physical issues like headaches, tension in your shoulders, or digestive problems.

Consider how often you enjoy things. Have you lost interest in things you used to enjoy? What habits have you formed as a way of coping with the stress?

How is your day-to-day life impacted by burnout?

The way you spend your time is indicative of what is affecting you most. If you are up late at night working on things when you could relax, or if it has been a while since you last spent time with a loved one, your life is probably being impacted by burnout. Burnout affects the little, daily things that we might overlook. It is in these small changes to our routines that end up steering us wildly off course, away from rest.

What areas of your life are most demanding?

Perhaps it’s not your work or career that is causing you the most stress. Some people find solace in their work because things there are more routine and predictable than at home. If you’re struggling to name the things that are most demanding of you, consider which things get the biggest emotional response out of you. Whatever provokes the biggest response out of you is probably the thing causing the most imbalance in your life.

How are you overextending yourself?

As you consider which areas of your life are most demanding, consider why you are devoting your time and energy to these pursuits. Everyone must extend themselves to certain things, whether it is their career, their children, or their relationship. However, many people give over and above what they can. If you are giving more than you are receiving, then that is a simple recipe for burnout.

What does your support system look like?

Who are the people on whom you can rely? Who do you feel completely at ease with? Who would you call up in an emergency? Everyone needs one or two people whom they can rely on for practical, emotional, or spiritual support. If you are lacking in this area, you will understand why you are experiencing burnout; you need a support system.

How can you pull back, delegate, or lean on your support system right now?

You are not Superman or Wonder Woman. You cannot do it all, even if in the past you could. Besides, even if superheroes were real, they would probably get time off! It might require you to be creative and spend some time thinking of solutions, but it will be time well spent for you to consider how you can hand over and scale back your responsibilities. Make use of your support system, and if you don’t have one, now is the time to consider how to start building one.

How can you give yourself adequate amounts of rest?

The older generations often scolded loved ones for “burning the candle at both ends.” Their point was valid because sometimes people end up doing so much in their free time that they end up being exhausted from both work and fun pursuits. How do you rest best? Remember that “work hard, party hard” is what could be causing the burnout.

Maintaining

When you have a solid idea of how burnout is affecting you, you can begin putting things in place to avoid it in the future. What can you do in the future to prevent burnout?
This step will require you to set up a lot of practical boundaries in areas that are commonly overlooked, such as no work demands and how you spend your rest time. Boundaries for work could be that you do not interact with it after 7 pm.

Maybe you will need to set up a focus filter on your devices, so that you are not pestered with professional demands once you clock out of work. Another thing to consider is how often you are being notified by different social media outlets. A boundary for this could be that you turn off the notifications and decrease the time you spend on social media. Implementing boundaries can be difficult, but it is your one solid hope of battling burnout.

The only way to combat burnout and to heal from PTSD is to rest. Rest is not simply sleep, just as a healthy meal is not made up of a single food type. You need a combination of many things to nourish your soul and find a deep inner peace and fulfillment. There are seven areas to consider when thinking about rest:

Physical It is important to take a good look at how much sleep you are getting, how often you are allowing yourself to spend time in the sun, how much you are exercising, and whether you are eating healthy.

Mental If all you have been doing recently is calculating, problem-solving, and analyzing, take a break with a good book, some calming music, or spending time with loved ones. Equally, taking a break from social media can help support your mental health.

Emotional Emotions are an important part of life. However, if you are experiencing emotion overload, it would be important to engage in activities that allow your emotions to take a rest, such as a relaxing walk.

Social Community is an important part of being a human; however, maintaining balance is imperative. Checking in to see if you need some time alone can help.

Sensory Today’s norms include being in sensory overload. It is important to take a break by being outside or in a quiet, restful place with minimal distractions and noises.

Creative You might not consider yourself creative, but you could experience deep rest with an hour of doodling or sculpting, regardless of what the product looks like when you are finished.

Spiritual We are created to need our Creator; therefore, you need a purpose, connection, and community to thrive. Seeking time with your Lord is imperative for overall health.

Growth and Healing

Many people feel like they are going around in circles. You might experience burnout as a young adult, only to encounter a similar experience later in life. If you are trying to learn and grow from past experiences, life can feel as if you are climbing a spiral staircase.

You might see the same things over and over again, but from a slightly higher vantage point each time. Growth and healing come when you can spot the early signs of PTSD or burnout and take steps to avoid it.

An important thing to remember is that we have a God who is our Healer. If you have experienced anything discussed in this article, just know He can do mighty things in your life if you trust that He can.

If you are struggling with any aspect of burnout and need support, we can walk this with you. Contact our office today to make an appointment with a therapist. A counselor is a good place to start and to discuss things with, even when you do have a support system in place.