Emotional burnout: symptoms and how to deal with it

Treatment of a nervous breakdown at the Brain Clinic is one of the priorities. This is due to the high psycho-emotional load of modern man. The nervous system of most people cannot stand it and it needs to be helped to cope and adapt to these stresses. We use the most modern hospital replacement methods of restorative medicine to stabilize a person’s neuropsychic activity.

In outpatient care and day hospital treatment, rehabilitation therapy of higher nervous activity is prescribed, which can be expressed in the use of various methods of psychotherapeutic, medicinal or physiotherapeutic assistance. If necessary, the techniques can be combined with each other in various versions.

Correct and complete diagnosis is the basis for curing a person from an existing illness.

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Diagnosis and treatment of nervous breakdown

Our goal is to provide you with the correct medical assessment of your nervous breakdown and, above all, to put your mind at ease. Do not panic, these conditions can be successfully treated, especially when a person promptly seeks help from a specialist.

When receiving medical care, a qualitative assessment of the general condition of the entire human nervous system, and not just the mental sphere, is necessary. Therefore, the diagnosis of such conditions should be carried out by doctors of related specializations: a neurologist and a psychotherapist or a psychiatrist. The position of some doctors that in such situations only a psychotherapist or a psychiatrist is completely wrong. It is very important! It is necessary to determine the main true cause of the malfunction of the nervous system, and not just its mental component. Once the cause is correctly identified, the doctor can prescribe appropriate measures to get rid of it.

Unfortunately, nervous breakdowns can also pose hidden dangers. In some cases, they carry complications in the form of various bodily ailments, affecting various parts of the brain. Successful treatment requires a good diagnostic base, which Brain Clinic has. The outcome of the disease depends on the completeness and quality of diagnostic measures. We recommend starting treatment for a nervous breakdown as early as possible. It is not uncommon for a patient to only need a one-time visit to a doctor and follow simple recommendations at home.

Manifestation of a nervous breakdown

• temporary behavioral disorders;
• panic attacks;
• neuroses;
• phobias;
• depression (decreased mood);
• asthenic conditions;
• sexual disorders.

All of this is a list of symptoms of a person’s painful condition and are not final diagnoses and do not reflect the true reason for the formation and manifestation of these sensations.

Complaints during a nervous breakdown

• Make complaints about your physical health, but continue to work and perform your duties;
• Avoid social obligations and mope;
• Changes in habits: eating, sleep and rest patterns, hygiene, etc.
• Violation in the sexual sphere (loss of satisfaction, decreased libido, lack of desire, etc.);
• Decreased background mood (depression);
• Sleep disorders (insomnia, drowsiness, feeling of lack of sleep);
• A number of other unusual or dysfunctional behaviors (irritability, aggression, nervousness) may occur.

Related complaints

• various pains in different parts of the body,
• headaches,
• fatigue,
• insomnia,
• feelings of anxiety,
• increased nervousness and irritability.

In this case, the following diseases may become aggravated: diseases of the spine, diseases of the musculoskeletal system, diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, diseases of the cardiovascular system.

Common stress relief

Usually, when a person is exposed to a stress factor for a long time or after this exposure ends, he begins to feel weakness, loss of appetite, sleep disturbance, and fatigue. As a rule, he comes to a therapist with these complaints. The therapist uses general tactics and tries to eliminate the symptoms. But, usually, he recommends visiting a psychiatrist to prescribe specific therapy that prevents the development of mental disorders. So-called post-stress therapy is necessary.

The therapist can limit himself to only general advice on anti-stress therapy, these are:

• restoration of the work and rest regime,
• restorative therapy (vitamins, herbal medicine, aromatherapy, water procedures, including hardening),
• undergo training in methods of self-relaxation and self-regulation of the body,
• prescribes mild sedatives.

Psychologists offer first aid for stress:

• deep and calm breathing,
• stopping internal dialogue,
• dissociation from the situation (look at yourself from the outside),
• outward expression of muscle tension (punching a chair, screaming, running in place, fighting dishes, dancing to loud music, etc.).

There will be as many different kinds of advice as there are psychologists. But this will not solve the main issue - preventing the formation of post-stress disorder. There will be no specific treatment. Although most of these tips can be added directly to the necessary therapy for stress.

Errors

The main mistakes with standard advice from a psychologist and therapist is that the biological negative impact on the physiological processes of the brain is not taken into account. If a therapist recommends that a patient visit a psychiatrist, this does not mean that the person has turned into a psycho. This recommendation only speaks of a specialist’s competent approach to the problem. He wants the patient to be able to completely get rid of possible consequences.

A psychologist who tries to solve this problem on his own is most likely poorly educated. He does not understand the possible danger of developing the consequences of stress received by a person. And this is not surprising since the psychologist has a pedagogical education. In his desire to help, he cannot see possible biological changes in the body.

The main mistake is that a person is afraid to turn to a psychiatrist at the moment. To a specialist who can really help and prevent possible consequences. However, do not be afraid! Go to an appointment with a psychiatrist and this will help you not only avoid the consequences of stress, but also strengthen your nervous system.

Main symptoms of a nervous breakdown

• Irregular heartbeat - you may feel that something is wrong with your heart. You think that you are seriously ill, but examinations are unlikely to convincingly confirm this.
• muscle tension/soreness
• sticky hands, excessive sweating
• dizziness or unsteadiness
• trembling and internal shaking are the most uncomfortable symptoms of a nervous breakdown because you worry that people might notice it
• upset stomach and intestines
• increased fatigue - energy quickly runs out and fatigue sets in, all energy is used in an attempt to cope with the crisis.
• exhaustion, weight loss

Common mental symptoms

• panic, fears and phobias
• inability to cope with the material (feeling of decreased intelligence, feeling of “dullness”)
• sexual problems - loss of libido, libido, impotence
• sleep disturbances—not being able to fall asleep, waking up frequently in the middle of the night, not being able to go back to sleep, thoughts that keep you from falling asleep
• alienation from loved ones - patients sometimes describe this as “living in a bubble.”
• Character/Personality changes - Irritability or outbursts of anger, strange behavior, loss of sense of identity, depersonalization.
• Hypochondria - It seems that health is in danger, and it is necessary to look for different doctors to treat imaginary diseases. They even agree to operations, but do not go to a psychotherapist.
• difficulty concentrating, lack of perseverance
• depression, neurotic conditions, increased anxiety levels

These symptoms often make a person think they are going crazy. That’s why it’s so important to start treating a nervous breakdown as early as possible.

Typical emotional manifestations of a nervous breakdown

• tearfulness – close to tears, easy to cry. Whether you are a man or a woman.
• guilt
• feeling of loneliness
• feeling of worthlessness, mediocrity
• be/feel "Paranoid"

These are just a few of the most common symptoms of a nervous breakdown. In fact, there are many, many more of them.

What does a nervous breakdown feel like?

Most often, people feel a nervous breakdown after some kind of shock.

Depending on the severity of stress a person experiences, it can greatly affect mental and even physical well-being.

If a person is on the verge of a nervous breakdown or is experiencing “professional burnout,” then any word can affect his state of mind. People often experience a feeling of worthlessness or uselessness, their condition sucks deeper and deeper and leads to manifestations of paranoia, depression, obsessive negative thoughts and other changes in mental health.

Psychologist services price list

Psychologist's advice No. 2.

You need to change your behavior strategy, this is done at a psychological consultation, where the psychologist, together with the client, builds a model of behavior and relationships that for the client suggests the best way out of any stressful situation.

Very often our attitudes and beliefs (often unconscious) prevent us from coping normally with the circumstances that oppress us. As a rule, these are attitudes aimed at relationships.

We all want to be accepted, loved, tolerated, communicated with and friendly, but in many families substitutes for this very love are “promoted.”

For example: in order to be praised we had to clean the room, give a good grade, or be polite to a parent. And then attitudes are born in us that if we do something or say what they want to hear from us, then they will love us. All this is good, but it all worked in childhood, and now there is a different reality that requires us to have our own interests and needs. As a rule, we do not satisfy these needs. We are either too polite and patient, or we are trying to earn more money into the house. This does not increase love, but we spend a lot both physically and emotionally. And so on for years. Thus, we get either a nervous breakdown or psychosmatics.

If you decide to seek help from a psychologist, then the Vashe-Soznanie.ru website will do everything to ensure that you receive psychological support in comfort and at an affordable price.

Psychologist's advice No. 3.

You should not think that if a person simply has frequent mood swings, then he is on the verge of a breakdown. But in this case, if these symptoms of a nervous breakdown in combination begin to appear with enviable regularity and the person is constantly overwhelmed by sudden changes in mood, then in this case it is worth considering seeking help from a psychologist.

What is a nervous breakdown?

Nervous breakdown is not a medical term and does not indicate a specific mental illness or condition. But this does not mean that such a condition is normal or physiological and does not require the organization of high-quality assistance to the person. On the contrary, such conditions require the organization of high-quality medical care with a complete diagnosis of the state of the nervous system.

Such a person’s description of his condition may indicate hidden mental health problems, and often requires particularly increased attention and even urgent medical attention. Since it is against the background of a nervous breakdown that various, more complex mental disorders can form. Signs and symptoms of a nervous breakdown or burnout syndrome are a sign that you have exhausted your mental and physical resources, they are depleted and require outside help. Burnout syndrome does not mean that you are crazy! Regardless of the symptoms that appear.

This is a turning point, a borderline moment. How your nervous system reacts, will it be able to withstand such large overloads. If you manage to help your brain in time and correctly, so that no mental illness begins to develop.

We hope that we can help you understand what happens at such turning points with the human nervous system.

Signs of a nervous breakdown always vary from person to person and depend on the cause, psycho-emotional status, culture, education and gender.

The concept of a nervous breakdown does not generally mean that a person is no longer able to function normally.

Burnout syndrome

On this page we take the position of the common use of the expression “I’m having a nervous breakdown” and from the position of many years of medical practice we will reveal this concept.

You've probably heard of burnout syndrome and wondered what it is? So let me explain. This is a term coined by psychologists to denote a state of exhaustion of nervous activity. This condition is popularly described as a nervous breakdown.

You may feel like you're going crazy right now, but you're not. These are just your sensations that are formed by the brain. We can help you recover. But this will not happen overnight, it will take some time.

The term "nervous breakdown" is sometimes used to describe a stressful situation in which someone becomes temporarily unable to function normally on a day-to-day basis.

This is usually well understood when the demands of life become physically and emotionally overwhelming. In the past, the term covered many different mental disorders, but is rarely used today. More often it is used in everyday life and implies a certain psychophysical discomfort of a person, and not a specific mental state.

A little test to test yourself

Emotional burnout is an extremely unpleasant condition that can lead to the development of all kinds of somatic and psychological ailments. The problem with diagnosis is that people often attribute the symptoms of the syndrome to banal fatigue and do not take them seriously.

The method for assessing emotional burnout, the Maslach questionnaire, is one of the most popular and reliable for assessing one’s own mental state. Diagnosis is carried out according to the main features - emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, reduction of professional achievements.

The questionnaire consists of 22 questions, for each of which you must select one answer option.

Decoding the results on the scale of emotional exhaustion - a feeling of emptiness, lethargy, the meaninglessness of what is happening, lack of positive emotions, mental and physical fatigue:

• 0-15 points – low level
• 16-24 – average level
• 25-54 high level.

Decoding the results on the depersonalization scale - indifference to work and its results, colleagues, partners, clients, lack of personal involvement:

• 0-5 points – low level
• 6-10 points – average level
• 11-30 points – high level

Decoding the results on the scale of reduction of professional achievements - decreased motivation to work, a negative assessment of one’s work in general and its results in particular, dissatisfaction with responsibilities, avoidance of them:

• 0-11 points – low level
• 12-18 points – average level
• 18-48 points – high level

If emotional burnout syndrome is not stopped in time, then its continuously increasing influence can significantly worsen the quality of life and lead to serious psychological problems and somatic diseases.

Causes of a nervous breakdown

Here are the most common reasons that can lead to a nervous breakdown (burnout syndrome):

• Sudden disaster
• Divorce or separation
• Injuries, possibly a series of injuries
• Drip-drip effect – long-term negative psycho-physical factors (long-term illness, unfavorable working conditions, family troubles, etc.)
• Stress related to work, family, political and economic situation, negative information received from newspapers, TV, the Internet, etc.
• Violation of the daily routine
• Alcohol and other psychoactive substances

More often than not, people are caught off guard, unaware that life could have fallen apart. They might never have thought that they were unable to cope with these factors themselves or were prone to breakdown of higher nervous activity.

Condition assessment

If you think you are experiencing a nervous breakdown, you should seek help from a psychotherapist or psychiatrist. Which will carry out the necessary diagnostic actions.

In the Middle Ages, a nervous breakdown meant melancholy. In the early 1900s, it was known as neurasthenia. From the 1930s until about 1970, this condition became known as a nervous breakdown and involved the formation of a mental disorder under enormous psychological pressure or mental and physical exhaustion.

Nervous breakdown is not a clinical term. Nervous breakdown is an imprecise and unscientific term that is no longer used in modern medicine. Modern science has removed the term “nervous breakdown” from its circulation and introduced a more precise definition of the state of the nervous system, which more fully characterizes the human condition and the causes of the disease. Psychologists replaced this term with the more sophisticated term “Burnout Syndrome,” which also has nothing to do with medicine. However, doctors have to reckon with everyday expressions and terms of psychologists.

Today, such popular concepts as a nervous breakdown and burnout syndrome can mean a wide variety of borderline mental conditions, such as depression, neuroses, asthenia, stressful situations and other mental conditions associated with difficulties in relationships, health problems, after an accident, or the death of a loved one person, dismissal, business failure, etc.

Practice shows that about a third of the population feel themselves on the verge of a nervous breakdown or directly experience a state of actual internal burnout, exhaustion, and inability to control themselves. Research shows that more than half of the population will experience some form of mental disorder during their lifetime, and some will experience the condition several times.

Who is most often affected?

In practice, there is a clear risk group, certain professions or stages of life, for which emotional burnout is more common. Among these categories of people are students, teachers, doctors, mothers.

1. Emotional burnout among students. Studenthood is a special stage in the life of every person, a time of increased activity, self-determination, and responsibility. The student is already an adult, but demands still continue to be placed on him. Instead of spending time with friends or a favorite hobby, the student is forced to prepare for an important session in order to continue studying and become a competent specialist. Responsibilities associated with preparing for classes are not the only activities of students - research work, creative and social associations, participation in conferences, forums, outdoor events, all these conditions create a favorable environment for the development of the syndrome. In this case, it is useful to seek the help of a teenage psychologist.
2. Emotional burnout among teachers. Educators encounter a variety of students of all ages and personalities every day. It is very difficult to find a common language with each of them, but within the framework of the educational process, an individual approach is a priority area of ​​professional activity. The teacher feels direct responsibility for the quality of children’s preparation, the results of their intermediate and final certification, but at the same time, their inability to cope with such a volume of work alone. Over time, the profession ceases to bring pleasure, fatigue and lack of acceptance of one’s own competence appear. The situation develops especially quickly when working with difficult children, disobedient, self-willed, and lacking initiative.
3. Emotional burnout among doctors. Employees of medical institutions take on enormous responsibility for the health, and often the lives of patients. Constant work with negativity (complaints, poor health, unpleasant procedures, stress) invariably affects the mental state of doctors. All specialists are susceptible to burnout to one degree or another, primarily those caring for cancer patients, patients with immunodeficiencies, as well as workers in intensive care teams.
4. Emotional burnout in mothers. It would seem that the birth of a child is a happy, significant event in life that cannot lead to negative consequences. However, in practice, an increasing number of mothers complain of emotional burnout. The baby begins to take up all the time, attention, strength, and this will continue until he comes of age. You need to have enormous internal energy resources to overcome all crisis stages of a child’s development without consequences for your own mental health.

For those who study, work in a responsible position, interact with a large number of people every day, or are parents, it is especially important to pay attention to spending their own leisure time and organizing rest in order to prevent the onset of emotional burnout.

Treatment for a nervous breakdown

A calm, supportive conversation is essential for your state of mind at times like these. But nothing can replace professional help from a psychotherapist or psychiatrist.

Manifestations of a nervous breakdown or burnout syndrome should not be ignored!

Of course, if you are experiencing these sensations, then you need to consult a psychotherapist in person. You shouldn’t hope that everything will go away on its own without leaving a trace. This is wrong. The resulting nervous breakdown or burnout syndrome will not leave you on its own. It may temporarily lose the strength of its manifestation (symptoms will decrease), but with the slightest negative effect, it will manifest itself again, but with greater force, and then there is a high probability of the need for hospitalization. Hospitalization, due to burnout or a nervous breakdown, is always very painful for a person. Why take it to the extreme when this problem can be solved more painlessly and much faster by undergoing high-quality outpatient treatment for a nervous breakdown. Depending on the reasons for the formation, the treatment of a nervous breakdown is based.

Drug treatment for a nervous breakdown

People who have suffered a nervous breakdown often need to take medication.

In most cases, the use of nootropic drugs, vitamins, and amino acids is sufficient. Less commonly, the use of antidepressants, sedatives and other specific drugs used in the treatment of a nervous breakdown is required.

Many of these drugs are not intended for long-term and permanent use. Some of them can be addictive. That is why monitoring by a doctor is required constant and very attentive.

Antidepressants – These drugs are mainly used for depression. You should be careful when prescribing them, since some types of depressive conditions preclude the use of these drugs.

Anxiolytics - These drugs are mainly used to relieve anxiety. Some anti-anxiety medications can be addictive.

Antipsychotics - these drugs are used mainly in the treatment of serious nervous breakdowns and mental disorders with more profound disorders of the metabolic processes of the brain. Their use requires particularly careful diagnosis and special monitoring throughout the entire period of treatment.

Mood stabilizers - These medications are commonly used to treat mood disorders.

Nootropics, vitamins, amino acids are necessary for the restoration and nutrition of nervous tissue cells. Inappropriate prescriptions can also cause serious complications.

Aromatherapy, Yoga and Massage Therapy. — These therapeutic procedures complement the treatment. They are used to help the patient relax. The body and mind will be given relief from the ravages that constant agitation has had on them.

Psychotherapy for nervous breakdown

Psychotherapeutic treatment for nervous breakdown is often preferred by people. However, this is often not enough due to a deficiency of amino acids and other essential ingredients for the functioning of nervous tissue. This type of treatment is usually used to treat a nervous breakdown or burnout syndrome. It is recognized as an effective tool in helping patients overcome the underlying psychological problems that led to their breakdown.

Psychotherapy is most effective in the final stages of therapy and during the rehabilitation period.

Hypnotherapy for nervous breakdown

Hypnosis is used to achieve several goals. To help the patient relax and as a diagnostic procedure. Hypnosis can also be used to rewire the brain.

It should be noted that this technique has many different contraindications. This is due to the specific impact of the procedure on a person’s mental activity. Therefore, hypnotherapy should be prescribed with caution and in the absence of contraindications.

Why do you need help with stress?

Stress is a destructive reaction of the body to a conflict between objective and subjective reality. Essentially, this is a protective reaction of the body. However, this can seriously harm a person’s mental functioning.

Every day a person experiences the influence of various physical and mental factors. Life is a process, something is constantly changing in it. And our mental activity is aimed at integrating new elements into our reality. We do this every second. A healthy personality quickly and constructively brings subjective and objective factors into line, maintaining the overall picture of the world. This is called in society a complete personality.

The consequences of stress can form more complex mental disorders. This is due to the fact that at the time of stress the brain works in overload mode. A breakdown of higher nervous activity may occur, even with a change in the metabolic processes of the brain. Therefore, qualified help with stress is necessary for almost every person.

Causes of stress

Our comfort zone is maintained only when there is consistency between the internal and external. But it happens that several new factors appear simultaneously and they resonate, or one factor arises, but it is very significant. In this regard, a person becomes unable to quickly navigate the situation and bring it into line with his internal understanding of the world. And then unresolved conflict leads to stress.

Why don't wild animals have similar experiences?

An animal does not divide things into objective and subjective, it has no duality and, accordingly, no internal conflict arises. In any situation, it does everything that depends on its physical abilities: it can run away or bite an enemy, get away from the cold, and direct all its strength to search for food and water. The beast unambiguously assesses the surrounding situation, its strengths and place in the social hierarchy, since it relies on its experience, and not on logic (abstract mind). He does not discuss why he is at the bottom of the hierarchical ladder, but tries to make his way to the top through certain rituals and fights with his fellow tribesmen.

Man is a more developed being. He has an idea of ​​an ideal (often imposed) and his own individual needs. It is also limited by cultural and moral frameworks: norms, rules, prohibitions, requirements, established etiquette, duty to loved ones or the Motherland, psychological oppression, etc. All this, from time to time, leads to a conflict of interest. The child wants to go to the toilet during class, but is afraid of a strict teacher or has a fear of making a public statement. He endures and does not raise his hands.

When to start treatment for a nervous breakdown

• You (suddenly) become overexcited - You sleep very little and poorly, there are sleep disturbances, your mood often changes, you speak at a rapid pace, you began to spend more in the store, make unnecessary, impulsive purchases, you feel confused thoughts, a feeling of inexplicable anxiety. All this can happen after you have been feeling depressed and sad for some time.
• There is a history of mental health problems and you feel you are sliding towards a mental disorder.
• You have thoughts of suicide

If you are concerned about someone else, then you really need to make sure that person gets professional help as soon as possible. It is necessary to immediately take measures to organize therapy. In such cases, the condition requires active therapy, which is best started in a hospital setting. After the condition has stabilized, it is better to transfer the person to home mode.