Burnout Unraveled Part 2: Identifying Signs, Before and After
Entry 2 of 4 in our exploration of Burnout: We delve into how to identify burnout before it happens, and what it looks like after it has set in.
// This is an entry in the "War to Writing" series. 'W2W' chronicles stories and lessons learned from my military career and retirement until joining Substack in November of 2024. //
Welcome to Part 2 of 4 in our April series: Burnout Unraveled.
I said last week:
After months of introspective thought, soul searching, and writing [weekly] on Substack, “Burnout” seems like the best word to describe what drove me to write here in the first place.
Burnout seems like the main topic that encompasses the reason everything else here was written.
As I’ve been writing here and weaving my tapestry of healing, I talked about Stoicism and Empathy and wrote about Overwhelm and Task Prioritization on the way to address Burnout – though I didn’t know that until the last few weeks.
I learned a lot in my research and picking the best information to share with you has been a fun challenge. I’ll do my best to make what I found worth your time to read. :)
Bottom line up front: Burnout comes in many forms and is not a sign of weakness. It can be tackled and overcome, but there are no “quick fixes.”
We can identify signs, before and after, to help us prevent or recover from burnout more effectively.
I should start with a couple quick disclaimers and definitions:
1 – Burnout is massive topic, and I will only scratch the surface here.
2 – I am not a doctor.1
3 – Take what I write as entertainment only, NOT medical advice. (And feel free to ask questions or add more thoughts to the conversation)
With that out of the way, let’s start with a few definitions.
Definitions of Burnout
Miriam Webster: 2a: exhaustion of physical or emotional strength or motivation usually as a result of prolonged stress or frustration
Dictionary.com: fatigue, frustration, or apathy resulting from prolonged stress, overwork, or intense activity.
Nervous system dysregulation can profoundly impact our health and well-being and is often the underlying cause of many common health issues such as chronic stress or anxiety, burnout, and various types of chronic pain or illness.
The DSM-5 would likely be a great place for authoritative information on burnout, but burnout is not officially recognized yet. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, often known as the “DSM,” is a reference book on mental health and brain-related conditions and disorders. The American Psychiatric Association (APA) is responsible for the writing, editing, reviewing and publishing of this book.
Outline:
Context - The lens of PTSD, ADHD, and Executive Functioning
Early Warning Signs (Before)
Burnout has Arrived (After)
Recap and Open Questions
Context: The lens of PTSD and ADHD.
The topic of “Burnout” is huge, so let me clarify the lens I used writing this series.
My most significant personal burnout challenges have been with executive functioning and nervous system regulation. That quickly led me to dig into PTSD and ADHD and their relationship with Burnout.
PTSD / Complex PTSD and Burnout
For what it’s worth, PTSD is my only formal mental health diagnosis. It’s obvious and I write about it, so I’ll just put it out here.
I expressed some of my perspective on PTSD in my article on Invisible Wounds, where I described a few experiences in the service and how they impacted healing journey and my recovery process.
Since I’ve been writing here, I’ve been primarily figuring out how to navigate PTSD. Specifically, it seems “Complex PTSD” is likely a better definition, which The Cleveland Clinic defines as: Complex post-traumatic stress disorder (CPTSD, C-PTSD or cPTSD) is a mental health condition that can develop if you experience chronic (long-term) trauma.
The article also states: “Some experts believe that CPTSD, PTSD and borderline personality disorder (BPD) may exist on a spectrum of trauma-related mental health conditions that vary in the severity of their symptoms.” … so, piecing everything together here has been a fun intellectual exercise. :)
ADHD & Burnout - Trait Overlap with Complex PTSD
Last week I mentioned a handful of reasons why I believe I’ve struggled with Burnout. At the time, I failed to mention ADHD but suggested I may be somewhere “on the spectrum.” The deeper I dig, the more I think ADHD is my most accurate and significant struggle.
does fascinating work on this subject.2 (Full Disclosure: I maintain a paid subscription to her Substack.)While ADHD may increase the chances of experiencing Burnout, that certainly is not a prerequisite. This does, however, provide my main perspective to explore the subject.
Though never formally diagnosed, I fought hard with ADD / ADHD my entire life. As a kid I barely ever contained it, but I managed to maintain some measure of control over it through my adult life. As burnout set in, ADHD became far less manageable and likely exacerbated challenges with skill regression and executive functioning.
According to this article on talksspace.com:
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), affecting more than 8% of the population, is a prevalent condition. For people living with ADHD, burnout can be a significant yet frequently overlooked consequence. Whether it’s struggling to maintain focus or difficulty managing time effectively, people with ADHD often find themselves trying to navigate a world that feels increasingly overwhelming.
I’ve recognized that ~90% of the adults I assess for Autism, ADHD and/or Giftedness have experienced at least one (usually more) episode of neurodivergent burnout, commonly linked to masking their differences at work, home or in other environments. Additionally, ~70% of the adults I assess show signs of Complex PTSD. That’s a lot of overlap.
On another note, if you struggle with ADHD,
is a Substack with relatable and engaging content.3 8^)Bottom Line: Regression of Executive Functioning = Burnout
Regression of executive functioning skills is a real thing with Burnout. Personally, I consider it the most significant hallmark. This has been the core of my experience, so it has been a particular focus of my recovery and research efforts.
also addresses this in her article:
Thus, a neurocomplex individual may not meet criteria for Autism and/or ADHD until later in life after or during a period of extensive burnout that has impacted (temporarily or permanently) their nervous system functioning in areas of executive functioning, verbal capacities, sensory processing, and social abilities—exposing these traits of complexity in a new way.
Basically, reduced executive function is complex, weird to experience, and even more difficult to understand and explain to others.
The stories below should provide extra context on what this looks like in action.
Early Warning Signs (Before)
The following stories are all real and illustrate several key stages along my personal burnout journey. If these feel like experiences you’ve had, they could be early signs of burnout. (I am not a doctor.4)
My first day back from leave
When the first day back from leave became a predictable nightmare, I should have noticed that as the first big sign.
About 12 years into my career, it became clear that my first day (or few) back from leave (or a deployment) was going to create a unique feeling of unease. I once described my demeanor on one of those days as:
“A thin veneer of professionalism coating a seething ball of rage.”
The predictable, sudden, crushing weight of so many piled up tasks and expectations from so many different directions made the first days back at work a real challenge.
I think those days were my first serious brush with anxiety. They were also likely a complicated mix of:
barely controlled ADHD
early-stage PTSD
self-loathing for such extreme ceding of autonomy/agency
Regardless, those days were early signs of burnout.
Autobahn Freeze
I once fielded a phone call from an individual who had just arrived in Germany while I was failing to take a quick nap in a hospital parking garage around lunch time.5
His car engine had just seized while driving on the Autobahn and he had pulled over to the side of the road. All I needed to tell him was:
pull over as far as you can
put on the reflective vest
set out the warning triangle down the road
Simple. Emergency. Procedures.
After that we could take a breath and make a plan. These were basic things he was about to learn because he was on his way to get his German driver’s license paperwork. It was my job to help him right then, but I couldn’t do it.
I knew those procedures well, and for many years… but the words wouldn’t form. It took me several moments to even get to: “Are you okay?” It took a few more minutes to make sure my boss was on the phone and taking care of him.
Executive functioning simply stopped. It didn’t pause; it didn’t get distracted or hung up on something else. It. Just. Stopped.
That was burnout. It may have been other things too, but it was certainly burnout.6
Full Throttle / No Lift
Around that time, I also realized I was basically running at Full Throttle but had No Lift.
That is another good way to describe burnout. If you find yourself pushing harder to achieve but notice your efforts producing less and less on a consistent basis you may be facing burnout.
At the end of my career, I experienced burnout and didn’t even recognize what it was. It looked like long days and late nights trying to tie up all our loose ends properly … but always feeling like there was more to do the next day than the day before. It wasn’t a lack of drive, motivation, or action… it was a lack of results.7
At the time, I expected our stress levels would drop and things would feel more “normal” again once we settled into our new home.
That’s not exactly how that worked out. ;p
While there were many reasons why settling in took longer than expected, burnout kept my overall stress level elevated far beyond the “settling-in” stage.
Here we are almost two years later, and I have some examples of “After” burnout to share to help our identification process. :)
Burnout has Arrived (After)
After we started settling in, there were more signs of burnout. Even though those signs were everywhere, it took me over a year to identify them for what they were. I hope sharing these stories will help you identify burnout in yourself or those you care about more quickly than I did. 😊
“Go! Go! Go!” didn’t work.
Knowing the lack of enforced structure in retirement would make it easy for me to get woefully unproductive, I hit the ground running with a “Go! Go! Go!” mentality.
It didn’t work.
As we settled into our new home, or started to, I pushed hard to maintain a “stay busy” mindset. I did this with a daily alarm early enough to wake up a bit before taking my daughter to school. I crafted an early morning podcast playlist to get me up to speed on current events and get my head outside my house and out in the world every day.
Even applying productivity techniques, it felt like daily to-do lists were growing each day and never seemed to stop. I expected to find a balance between work and relaxing fairly quickly in retirement. Nope.
We had a fresh start at a new life we were crafting for ourselves, basically on our terms. I tried cleaning up every loose end to help pour our new foundation as smoothly as possible. Minor house repairs or yard projects, trying to organize our mountain of “stuff,” keeping our aging cars in good shape, setting up new doctors, and all the fun things that come with moving to a new place… it just never stopped….
…until I realized so much of my “to-do” list was not necessary, was more than I needed to be doing, and had actually become counterproductive.
My First Attempt at Solitude
So there I was, alone in a literal cabin in the woods, just two miles from the Blue Ridge Parkway, and I couldn’t relax.
In June of 2024, I realized I needed a break, so I made my first attempt at solitude.
A cabin in the woods sounded nice, and I had almost 72 hours alone.
No cell service.
Barely enough internet for Netflix.
A functional landline phone for a single tether to civilization.
It was truly a bucket list getaway.
I arrived on a Thursday evening and left Sunday morning. There was a full kitchen, and I brought everything I needed. I had all the important food groups: salty, crunchy, chocolate, red vines, beef, chicken, cheese, donuts, Mt. Dew and Yoohoo. I had a couple new recipes I was excited to try before subjecting anyone else to them, and it was game-on. With the Blue Ridge Parkway less than two miles away, breathtaking scenery was practically at my doorstep.
I had no responsibility to anyone but myself. No alarm clocks. No cats to feed. No errands to run. No one to talk to, for a short while, and that was a good thing, or so I thought.
I brought books to read. I figured I would enlighten, educate, or entertain myself with something befitting the large recliner by the fire. The peace and quiet was nearly perfect. Above the roaring flames I heard nothing of the world outside.
But I still couldn’t relax.
Though not precisely burnout,
described that feeling well:I found myself pacing, thinking, and trying to solve problems far beyond my control from the cabin. Those thoughts that weighed me down could wait – should wait. Was I afraid of stopping or even slowing down?
I was once again at full throttle and failing to achieve lift, but this time I was supposed be enjoying solitude, not trying to fly the plane!
Three nights alone at a cabin in the woods wasn’t as relaxing as I’d hoped… but it was instructive. It helped me realize that even a nearly ideal setting, which seemed a perfect way to recharge, was not a quick fix – and I was fighting something I didn’t understand.
Working through burnout is a lengthy process without any easy ‘quick fix.’
An Unexpected Timeline
While everyone’s experience and timeline will differ, one seemingly common thread is that everything seems to take much longer than expected.
In my case, after we arrived at our new home, it took 10 months to set up my desk… and that was a pretty high priority for me!
During that time our family struggled with a lot more than I (probably all of us) anticipated, and everything happening slower than expected added to the frustration.
Eventually, after my first attempt at solitude, I realized I needed to do something, anything, to try to sort out the chaos in my head. I still wouldn’t name it “burnout” for another 9 months, but at least I had identified that my racing thoughts were a key target to address.
That led to writing, and I started to see some small measure of recovery in my rear-view mirror.
Recap and Open Questions
Recap: Identifying Burnout
Now that we’ve identified burnout, you can take these key takeaways to increase your awareness, aid your struggle with burnout, or help those around you:
Burnout is exhaustion of physical or emotional strength or motivation, fatigue, frustration, or apathy resulting from prolonged stress, overwork, or intense activity.
Burnout has a significant and measurable overlap with ADHD and Complex PTSD.
Early signs are detectable.
There are no "Quick Fixes"
Regression of Executive Functioning Skills is a hallmark of Burnout.
It is possible to work through and overcome burnout, but it takes time.
Next Week: Prevent and Reduce Burnout
Recovery can be lengthy - I’ve heard 2 years is a common starting timeline. I may have inadvertently touched on that in my "2 Years in a Blink” missive.
This makes Prevention and Reduction even more important.
Next week we will address Preventing Burnout and Reducing its impact on our lives. Some things we will touch on:
Work/Life Balance - find one and prioritize appropriately. (Hint: 20 years from now, the only people who will remember you worked late are your kids.)
If you identify burnout, you can step back and reevaluate your best path forward.
I will also try to answer: “What do I wish I had done differently?” My best answer so far is: Prioritize human connections with more people around me.
What works for you?
When we think about Burnout - Identifying signs (before and after,) Preventing or Reducing its impact, and Recovering from Burnout — I am curious to hear your thoughts.
What works for you?
How do you identify burnout?
How do you help prevent or reduce its impact?
Do you have any recovery tricks?
Have you tried anything that was particularly effective … or a complete and total bust? 😊
Feel free to share your thoughts in the comment section below or send me a DM if you prefer.
Thank you, dear reader, for joining me on this Substack journey and this 4-week project. I hope you found these words helpful or insightful in some way.
I wish you a pleasant week, and I look forward to seeing you again next Saturday as we continue weaving a Tapestry of Healing.
Take care,
- jofty 8^)
I have no significant training as a health professional, mental health or otherwise. Though I made my best effort to ensure accuracy, feel free to let me know if I got something wrong. :)
Autism, Giftedness, and Neurodivergence are beyond the scope of this article, but relevant in my research, so I add this note:
I am hesitant to even mention Autism or Giftedness because I am simply uninformed about most of the nuance involved with those terms. ADHD and I have been together a long time, so I can speak about that with a great deal of personal experience. I include references here with Autism/Giftedness primarily because Lindsey Mackereth’s research speaks directly to me with relevant insight on burnout, PTSD, and ADHD. Her assessments and research also cover Autism and Giftedness, which I am only beginning to explore.
I have never been diagnosed or had a medical professional suggest I was on the Autism spectrum. As for giftedness, the last time a professional labeled me with that term I was in grade school and they called it “Academically Talented.” ‘Gifted’ sounds like something out of a movie, not like me. :)
I find the way Lindsey Mackareth addresses the interplay between ADHD and Complex PTSD absolutely fascinating. If these subjects interest you too, have fun digging in. 8^)
Why ADHD perfectionism leads to overthinking, avoidance, and burnout.
This article touches on burnout from the perspective of ‘‘ADHD Perfectionism.” As a “recovering perfectionist,” my favorite line is:
“Perfectionism isn’t about doing things perfectly; it’s about finding faults easily.”
Finding fault easily is a daily issue that has been part of my burnout struggle and possibly goes back well before those signs began. ;p
I am not a health care professional, and my “advice” should not be taken as professional medical advice. See footnote #1. :)
That attempted nap was my latest idea to reduce stress. I found napping, even short, tactical ones, can be helpful… sometimes. The hospital parking garage nap was while my wife was having surgery, and I had nothing to do but wait. A quick nap in my car sounded better than sitting in a chair in a waiting room surrounded by people speaking German. 😊 This was also happening just two weeks before we packed up our house to move from Germany to the US, so stress levels were rather elevated and even brief moments to “just chill” were precious.
Still… I should have been able to handle that call.
This Autobahn incident was also around the time I needed to remove Caffeine from my life for a while. Once I realized caffeine was increasing my anxiety, I had to put it down, but it was tough. I was practically living on coffee at the time, so finding an energy balance in that season was real fun. :)
Once upon a time, there was this hard-charging young Captain who some of us affectionately called “Roomba.” This guy was all over the place, involved in everything, constantly checking in, making sure everything was on track, and that everyone was as excited about their work as he was. But he never actually … did … anything. Perhaps he was a walking example of burnout, but there may be other terms for “that guy.” ;p
I appreciate your BLUF: burnout is not a weakness. Also, it is a leader/manager’s responsibility to take care of their people. Burnout at work can be avoided with the right people in charge. Do you feel your leadership was there for you during your last few months of active duty? Were your leaders aware of your struggles?
I have a name for the perfectionist inside me. I tell her to simmer down or be quiet when she’s bugging me with extra tasks that aren’t necessary. I tell her to go away or leave me alone or just get used to it, i.e., crumbs, weeds, granules of cat litter on the basement stairs, a disheveled desk, disheveled anything. I don’t have mental space for her or the time. The car needs washed, and she insists. I take a nap instead.