Burnout is a significant issue affecting many employees in all types of workplaces. While it’s not always caused by workplace or occupational stress, it’s very prevalent in workplaces because of how integrated our lives are with our careers. If burnout is happening in one’s personal life, it often impacts their professional output. That’s why it’s important to know regardless how to deal with burnout at work and cope with its effects. What’s more, understanding how to deal with burnout at work is essential for maintaining both your mental and physical health. While managing burnout with proper treatment and recovery is critical, this article focuses on practical coping strategies to help manage burnout on the job. Can burnout make you sick?Burnout is not just a state of mind — so what does burnout really mean then? Burnout is when you experience chronic stress and exhaustion, not just feeling tired after a busy day on the job.When stress and exhaustion are prolonged like this, a lot of the effects translate not just into mental and behavioural symptoms, but they start to manifest as physical ailments as well. It can lead to a range of health issues, including:Insomnia: Persistent stress can make falling or staying asleep difficult, leading to sleep deprivation.Headaches: Tension and stress often manifest as frequent headaches or migraines.Gastrointestinal Problems: Stress can disrupt the digestive system, causing issues such as stomach aches, nausea, and irritable bowel syndrome.High Blood Pressure: Chronic stress can lead to increased blood pressure, posing long-term risks to cardiovascular health.Weakened Immune System: Prolonged stress can weaken the immune system, making you more susceptible to illnesses. Autoimmune Flare-Ups: if you already suffer from an autoimmune condition, burnout can often exacerbate or relapse your symptoms.If burnout is left untreated or you don’t give yourself enough time to properly recover from burnout, longer-term illnesses and prolonged health impacts can ensue. That’s why it’s vital to understand the risks and how to properly address burnout before it leads to more serious complications.Calling in sick due to burnoutRecognizing when burnout is affecting your ability to work is crucial. Sometimes, the best course of action is to take a step back and allow yourself time to recuperate. But how exactly do you bring up to your manager that you’re ‘burnt out’? There’s still a stigma around mental health and stress leave in many organisations, but it’s a real, valid reason to call in sick or ask for leave. However, navigating a difficult manager can make this less likely to happen for many individuals, leading to prolonged effects both on the individual and the business. When calling in sick from burnout, it is essential to communicate effectively what you’re experiencing with your employer and make it clear what the situation is. Here are some tips to keep in mind: Be Honest: While you don’t need to disclose every detail, being honest about your mental health can foster understanding and support from your employer.Give Notice: If possible, give your employer advance notice to minimise disruption.Offer Solutions: Suggest ways to manage your workload during your absence, such as delegating tasks to colleagues or setting up an out-of-office email response.Especially upon return, be clear about how your managers can support in your return so you can prevent burnout from striking again. Be honest and open about what you can and can’t handle and have a bit of a post-mortem with them as to what led to this absence. While it’s often seen as a negative thing to admit your inability to complete work or talk about your time off, it actually shows responsibility and dedication to your organisation — because you’re showing them you care about the health of the business as well. Just be sure to offer solutions and show your enthusiasm about supporting your team as well.If you’re experiencing any of the following symptoms, consider taking some time off, speaking to a trusted leader in your organisation, or even consulting a doctor for a note of forced leave: Persistent Fatigue: Finding yourself constantly exhausted despite adequate rest.Decreased Performance: Struggling to complete tasks that were once easy, missing deadlines, and making frequent mistakes.Emotional Instability: Increased irritability, anxiety, and feeling overwhelmed.Lack of Motivation: A significant drop in enthusiasm and motivation for work.While employees need to take action to prevent and manage their burnout, it’s just as vital for leaders of companies to be aware of these signs, and spot them in their workplace before they become problematic and serious for both the individual and the workplace. And when employees call in and address it, it’s equally as important to be empathetic, and truly listen to the individual as they explain their symptoms. Be sure you’re building a culture that makes employees feel heard so should something unfortunate like burnout happen to one of your teammates, they feel safe enough to bring it up before it becomes a big problem. This is vital to the health of your employees facing burnout and the rest of your team. How to manage burnoutManaging burnout requires a proactive approach to both your work environment and your personal habits. Here are some effective strategies to help manage burnout:1. Identify the causesThe most important thing in managing burnout is to understand what's causing it, so you can restructure or remove that influencer as quickly as possible. Walk through your daily routine and ask yourself when you start to feel the stress rising. What is it that’s causing that stress? Sometimes, doing meditation or mindfulness exercises like journaling can help you get down to the root cause of what’s causing you so much stress. Once you do this, you can proactively take steps to either delegate, remove, or prioritise differently so this no longer causes you prolonged stress and anxiety. 2. Set boundariesEstablish clear boundaries between work and personal life. This includes:Start Setting Designated Work Hours: If you’re still attending work in this time, or returning from absence, be sure to stick to a consistent schedule and avoid working beyond your designated hours. Turn off work-related notifications during non-working hours to prevent constant connectivity.Set Goals and Targets: Have specific measurables of success that are attainable to you so you don’t always feel the need to continuously do more and burn yourself out again. Taking Breaks: Ensure you take regular breaks throughout the day to rest and recharge. Especially if you’re sitting down, get up, get a change of scenery and go for a walk if you can. 3. Practise some form of daily self-careIncorporate self-care practices into your daily routine to support your mental and physical health when feeling burned out. Find whatever routines work for you, but some fundamentals to focus on are: Exercise: Regular physical activity can reduce stress and improve overall wellbeing.Healthy Eating: Maintain a balanced diet to support your energy levels and immune system.Sleep Hygiene: Prioritise quality sleep by maintaining a regular sleep schedule and creating a restful environment without technology. 4. Seek supportDon’t hesitate to seek support from colleagues, friends, and professionals if you need it. Sometimes simply talking to someone about your feelings can reduce stress, or even better, help you find ways of changing your situation so that it’s more manageable. Consider reaching out to: Supervisors: Discuss your workload and any concerns with your supervisor to find ways to alleviate stress, reduce your workload and find out what supports are available to you. Colleagues: Build a support network at work to share experiences and coping strategies, and have a safe space to go and talk about your feelings. Professionals: Consider speaking with a therapist or counsellor to develop personalised coping strategies for burnout and day-to-day stress.5. ReprioritiseOftentimes when we burnout, it’s because our priorities aren’t straight and we have too much to manage. Effective time management and re-organisation of priorities and schedules can help reduce stress and find something that’s more sustainable. This could include: Eisenhower Matrix: To take your to-do lists to the next level, the Eisenhower Matrix helps you to organise all of your tasks into categories based on importance and urgency. Set Realistic Goals: Break down large projects into manageable tasks and set achievable goals.Delegate: Delegation isn’t a sign of weakness, but rather a sign of self-awareness and strength. Don’t be afraid to delegate tasks to others when necessary. It’s best for you and the task at hand. 6. Engage in hobbies and leisure activitiesIf work is taking up all of your time, burnout is inevitable. We need things outside of work to fill our cups and energise us as well. Be sure to make time for other types of activities that aren’t related to work and help you relax.These could be general hobbies that bring you joy, seeing friends and family or practising relaxation techniques like yoga or meditation to relieve stress. 7. Improve your work environmentEspecially if you’re working from home, your work can easily impede your personal life, and take away your ability to truly relax in your time off. But whether you’re in-office or at home, do your best to create a workspace that promotes productivity and reduces stress:Ergonomic Setup: Ensure your workspace is ergonomically designed to prevent physical strain, that the temperature is right, and you aren’t straining yourself in any way to get your work done. Less resistance means less stress.Declutter: Be sure to keep your workspace organized and free of clutter to reduce distractions and be sure it’s a place you feel energised to come into each day. Personal Touches: Add personal touches — from photos to knick-knacks that make your space feel like your own. Adding elements of nature or flowers can even help calm your nervous system and contribute to creating a more productive, stress-free workspace. 8. Continuous learning and developmentOftentimes burnout can be triggered by a lack of satisfaction at work, causing additional stressors and a lack of balance. That’s why it’s always important for employees to take time out for themselves to constantly provide opportunities for learning and development. Learning and improving is incredible to improve cognitive function and get out of the often stressful mundanity of everyday life. Do your best to continuously engage in learning to maintain motivation and engagement at work: Are you ready to beat burnout?We just surveyed over 2000+ employees across the UK, and spoke with some expert leaders in the field to get their perspectives on how they really feel about burnout.Equipped with checklists, current data and workplace guides, you can learn how to identify, treat and prevent burnout in your workplace using our brand new Anti-Burnout Book available to download for FREE right here.About YuLifeYuLife is working to reimagine the insurance industry by protecting lives, rewarding living and inspiring life. We’re on a mission to transform traditional insurance into a life-enhancing experience each employee will value and use daily. How does it work?Our award-winning app uses behavioural science and game mechanics to reward your people for living well while offering protection in case of crisis. And with our top-rated employee assistance programme, your team gets access to mental, financial and social support, virtual GPs, nutritionists, life coaches and more to help them live their best lives.Because we believe that your employees should benefit from their insurance from day one — and that wellbeing should be accessible every day, for everyone.Request a demo for your team today.