VN April 2022

Vetnuus | April 2022 28 I hope this article finds you and your families well and safe!!! In the last few columns, we spoke about prioritising your goals and objectives, writing down a to-do list, and following step by step, but life will throw us curve balls and create obstacles. In doing all that, we sometimes take a significant amount of time to make progress and bring about the change we desire. We should all be careful of chronic fatigue. Burnout is a psychological concept for the experience of long-term exhaustion and diminished interest (depersonalisation), especially in the work environment. Burnout symptoms increased for 24% of UK employees in 2020 (https://hrnews.co.uk/burnout-symptoms-increase-for-24-of-uk-employees-in-2020-january-burnout-spike-predicted/) Burnout can affect anyone at any time in their lives. However, a recent study has shown that the average professional experiences burnout by age 32 (https://www.studyfinds.org/average-worker-career-burnout-age-32/) . Burnout usually occurs because of a period of expending too much effort at work while having too little recovery. Health care workers are more prone to suffer fromburnout and thus an occupational hazard. Compassion fatigue, bullying, chronic fatigue, weight gain and a host of other stress-related health challenges can result from unchecked stress and burnout. Burnout has been described as an inability to cope with emotional stress at work or as excessive use of energy and resources leading to feelings of failure and exhaustion. Potential causes or contributors are: • providing care around the clock • patients becoming vulnerable and too needy • health care that is constantly changing • development of new technologies • constant noise & business • critical ill patients • crisis of patients and family’s • work environment- work overload (limited time, resources, staff) • demographic - young age, early in career, high level of education • personality- low self-esteem, need for approval, • perfectionism, impatience When we join the workforce, we often start by experiencing high job satisfaction, commitment, energy, and creativity. It is especially true of a new job role or the beginnings of a business venture. Believe it or not, that is the beginning of burnout, and you may begin to experience predicted stresses of the initiative you’re undertaking. Hence, it’s essential to start implementing positive coping strategies, such as taking practical steps to support your wellbeing alongside your professional ventures. Self-care is about permitting yourself to take time out for yourself to boost your mental, physical, and emotional wellbeing. Examples of self-care can include a relaxing activity, enjoying physical exercise, practising Mindfulness, and nurturing a sleep routine (https://www.thisiscalmer.com/calmer-days ). Influential Life Coaching IDENTIFYING BURNOUT Dr Mats Abatzidis B.Sc. B.V.Sc. New Insights Certified VIP Life Coach mats.abatzidis@yahoo.co.za Founder of Influential Life Coaching http://www.matsaba.wix.com/drmatscoach Author of the published book“Life outside your comfort zone. Better and beyond all expectations”. http://www.amazon.com/s/ref =nb_sb_noss?url=search- alias%3Ddigital-text&field-keywords=Abatzidis http://www.life-coach-directory.co.za/mats-abatzidis