Burnout Is A Hidden COVID-19 Crisis, And You Might Have It
Nearly six months ago, when the pandemic forced us all indoors, with no clear end in sight, I was overcome by absolute dread and then, mysteriously, a tempting sense of optimism.
An image of the days to come materialized in my brain, resplendent with all that excess free time, and I allowed my ambitions to run wild. Thankfully, I still had my job, so I entertained my fantasies. Some things I imagined I might do over the course of the weeks in isolation: learn to cook elaborate meals; become a more devoted cinephile; write a short story; pick up the basics of a new language; Zoom happy hours and parties with friends; read, like, 30 books; relax; achieve my ideal body by the grace of some workout assistant app; be so productive I would, inevitably, surprise myself.
What surprised me most were my many failures to launch.
As it turned out, I didn’t feel so productive. Oftentimes, I didn’t even feel like myself. Whatever sense of optimism I’d initially cobbled together was misplaced somewhere along the way, then traded for a horrible, creeping anxiety. I couldn’t focus. Reading became impossible. I had headaches, and trouble sleeping. I felt incredibly nervous for my mother, an essential worker. My grandmother, already wearied by other health concerns, was hospitalized with COVID-19, and I became terrified of getting anyone sick.
I felt this way for months. It didn’t occur to me that these things might all be connected until, about a week ago, a very astute colleague said, very plainly, “It’s called burnout,” then, “It’s hard to recognize that sometimes. But it’s good to name what’s happening.”
Watch: Exercising less, but still feeling tired? Here’s why. Story continues below.
COVID-19 is making Canadians anxious and “literally depressed”
My colleague was right, on both counts.
“The pandemic is a recipe for depression and anxiety,” Dr. Ingrid Söchting, director of the University of British Columbia Psychology Clinic, told HuffPost...
