Signs of Burnout: 15 Warning Signs You're Burning Out (And What to Do About It)
You wake up tired. Your alarm goes off and the first thought in your head is: "I can't do this today." But you do it anyway. Again. And again. And again.
Sound familiar?
You're not alone. Over 77% of workers say they've experienced burnout at their current job. That's not just feeling tired after a long week—that's something deeper. Something that doesn't go away after a good night's sleep or a weekend off.
We see so many high-achievers pushing through exhaustion, thinking they just need to work harder or be stronger. But burnout isn't about being weak. It's what happens when your body and mind have been running on empty for too long.
This guide will help you spot the signs of burnout before it takes over your life completely. You'll learn what burnout really means, how it's different from regular stress, and what you can do about it. Because recognizing the warning signs is the first step to feeling like yourself again.
What Is Burnout? (And Why It's Different from Regular Stress)
Burnout is a state of emotional, physical, and mental exhaustion caused by prolonged stress. It's what happens when you've been pushing yourself too hard for too long without enough rest or support.
Here's the thing: burnout isn't the same as having a stressful week at work. Regular stress is temporary. You feel overwhelmed, maybe anxious, but when the stressful situation ends, you bounce back. Burnout doesn't work like that.
Burnout can sneak up on anyone. It doesn't care if you love your job or have a "good" life on paper.
Let's look at how stress and burnout are actually different:
How to Tell the Difference: Stress vs Burnout vs Depression
😰 Regular Stress
Overwhelmed, anxious, worried
Too many demands at once
Specific situations or events
Temporary (goes away with rest)
Anxious, wired, restless
Still hopeful things will get better
Rest and removing the stressor
🔥 Burnout
Empty, detached, numb, don't care
Prolonged stress, usually work-related
Usually work or one major life area
Chronic (weeks to months)
Depleted, exhausted, running on empty
Cynical, negative about everything
Major life changes plus therapy
💙 Depression
Hopeless, worthless, deeply sad
Chemical imbalance, trauma, genetics
All areas of life affected
Persistent (2+ weeks minimum, often longer)
No energy or motivation at all
No hope, everything feels pointless
Therapy and possibly medication
⚠️ Important: You can experience burnout AND depression at the same time. Chronic burnout often leads to depression. The symptoms overlap significantly, which is why professional assessment is so valuable. If you're not sure which you're dealing with, talk to a therapist who can help you figure it out and create a treatment plan.
The key difference? Stress makes you feel like you're drowning in responsibilities. Burnout makes you feel like you've already drowned—you're just going through the motions underwater.
Quick Burnout Assessment: How Many Apply to You?
Check how many of these statements describe your current experience:
Results:
0-2 checked: You might be stressed but not burned out yet
3-5 checked: You're showing clear signs of burnout
6-8 checked: You're experiencing significant burnout—consider getting help
The 3 Stages of Burnout
Honeymoon Phase / Early Warning
What it looks like: High energy at first, but you're starting to feel tired. You're still optimistic but working extra hours. You might skip breaks or ignore early signs of stress.
Common thoughts: "I can handle this" • "Just a busy season" • "I'll rest later"
Onset of Stress / Chronic Symptoms
What it looks like: Exhaustion doesn't go away. You're irritable, procrastinating, and your work quality drops. Physical symptoms appear—headaches, sleep issues, getting sick often.
Common thoughts: "I can't keep up" • "Nothing I do matters" • "I'm so tired"
Chronic Burnout / Complete Exhaustion
What it looks like: You feel nothing. Complete emotional numbness, detachment from everything, physical and mental collapse. You can't function normally. You fantasize about escaping.
Common thoughts: "I don't care anymore" • "I can't do this" • "What's the point?"
💡 Good to know: The earlier you catch burnout, the faster you can recover. Stage 1 might take weeks to bounce back from. Stage 3 can take months.
The 15 Most Common Signs of Burnout
Burnout doesn't happen overnight. It builds up slowly. You might notice one or two of these signs at first, then suddenly you're dealing with five or six.
Here's what to watch for.
🚨 Physical Warning Signs at a Glance:
- Constant exhaustion that doesn't improve with rest
- Getting sick more frequently than usual
- Unexplained headaches, muscle tension, or stomach problems
- Can't fall asleep or can't stay asleep
- Eating way more or way less than normal
If you're experiencing 3 or more of these consistently, your body is sending you a message.
Physical Signs of Burnout
1. You're Exhausted All the Time (No Matter How Much You Sleep)
This isn't your normal "I stayed up too late" tired. This is bone-deep exhaustion that doesn't go away.
You wake up tired. You need multiple cups of coffee just to function. By 2 PM, you're crashing hard. And even when you do sleep, it doesn't help. You could sleep for 10 hours and still wake up feeling like you got hit by a truck.
Even after a relaxing Saturday, you still feel drained on Sunday. That vacation you took last month? You were tired again by Wednesday.
This type of exhaustion is one of the earliest signs of burnout, and it's your body's way of saying, "I've been running on fumes for too long."
2. You Get Sick More Often
Remember when you used to bounce back from colds in a few days? Now every little bug that goes around the office lands on you. And it sticks around for weeks.
Your immune system is weakened when you're experiencing burnout. Your body is so focused on just getting through each day that it doesn't have energy left to fight off infections.
Constant colds, headaches that won't quit, stomach issues that come and go—these are all ways your body is trying to tell you it needs a break.
3. Physical Pain That Won't Go Away
Tension headaches. Tight shoulders. Back pain. Stomach problems. Sound familiar?
When you're burned out, stress shows up in your body. You might clench your jaw all day without realizing it. Your shoulders are up by your ears. Your stomach is in knots.
This mind-body connection is real, and individual therapy can help you address both the physical symptoms and the underlying stress that's causing them.
Tension headaches: Press your thumbs into the base of your skull for 30 seconds
Tight shoulders: Roll them backwards 10 times, then forwards 10 times
Stomach issues: Try the 4-7-8 breathing technique (breathe in for 4, hold for 7, out for 8)
These help in the moment, but they're not a fix for burnout—just band-aids while you work on the real problem.
4. Sleep Problems (Can't Fall Asleep or Can't Stay Asleep)
Here's the cruel irony of burnout: you're exhausted all day, but when you finally get to bed, your mind won't shut off.
You lie there at 2 AM thinking about everything you have to do tomorrow. Or you fall asleep okay but wake up at 4 AM with your brain already racing. Or you're so tired you can't even sleep—yes, that's a thing.
You feel exhausted but wired at the same time. Your body needs rest but your mind won't let you have it.
5. Changes in Appetite
When you're experiencing burnout, your relationship with food changes. Some people eat way more, using food to cope with stress or to feel something other than numbness. Others forget to eat entirely, going hours without food because they're just going through the motions.
You might gain or lose weight without trying. You might find yourself eating dinner at 9 PM because you forgot about lunch. Or maybe you're eating constantly but never feel satisfied.
These changes in appetite are your body's stress response gone haywire.
If you checked 3+ of these boxes, your body is screaming for help:
Emotional and Mental Signs of Burnout
6. You Don't Care About Things That Used to Matter
This is one of the most telling signs of burnout. Things that used to bring you joy? You feel nothing. Projects you used to be passionate about? You're just going through the motions.
You show up to work and do what you need to do, but there's no spark. You hang out with friends, but you feel disconnected. You try to enjoy your hobbies, but they feel like just another thing on your to-do list.
Life starts to feel flat. Like you're watching everything happen from behind a thick glass wall.
This emotional detachment is different from signs of depression, though the two can overlap. With burnout, the numbness is often tied to a specific area of your life—usually work or caregiving.
7. You're Cynical and Negative (About Everything)
You used to be the optimistic one. Now? Everything annoys you.
Your coworker makes a suggestion in a meeting and you immediately think, "That's never going to work." Someone tells you about their exciting new project and you mentally roll your eyes. Someone asks how you're doing and "What's the point?" becomes your catchphrase.
You're bitter about small things. You make sarcastic comments. You assume the worst about everything and everyone.
This cynicism is a defense mechanism. When you're burned out, caring feels too risky. It's easier to expect nothing than to be disappointed again.
"I used to love my job. Now I drag myself there every day."
"I snap at my kids over nothing, then feel terrible about it."
"Everyone tells me to just rest, but rest doesn't help anymore."
If these thoughts feel familiar, you're not alone—and you're not broken. You're burned out, and that's fixable.
8. You Feel Helpless and Trapped
One of the most painful signs of burnout is the feeling that nothing you do makes a difference.
You work hard, but it's never enough. You try to get ahead, but you keep falling behind. You look for solutions, but they all feel impossible. You can't see a way out of the situation you're in.
Maybe you feel stuck in your job. Maybe the career path you chose doesn't feel right anymore but you don't know what else to do. Maybe you're trapped in a cycle of responsibilities you never signed up for.
This sense of helplessness is real, and it's heavy. But it's also a sign that something needs to change.
9. You Snap at People More Often
Your fuse is short. Really short.
Your partner asks a simple question and you snap at them. Your kid makes a normal kid noise and you lose it. A coworker sends one more email and you want to scream.
Little things that wouldn't have bothered you before now set you off. And then you feel guilty about it later. You know you're being unfair, but you can't seem to stop.
This irritability is one of the behavioral signs of burnout, and techniques to reduce anxiety and stress can help you manage these reactions before they damage your relationships.
10. You Can't Focus or Remember Things
Brain fog. That's the only way to describe it.
You read the same email three times and still don't know what it says. You forget appointments. You miss deadlines that you swore you had written down. You walk into a room and have no idea why you're there.
Your brain is overloaded. You're running on empty, and your cognitive function is one of the first things to go. When you're experiencing burnout, even simple tasks feel hard because your mental resources are tapped out.
Not caring, cynical thoughts, feeling trapped, irritability, brain fog
Procrastinating, isolating, neglecting self-care, using substances to cope
Most people experience a mix of physical, emotional, AND behavioral signs.
"Burnout isn't a sign of weakness. It's a sign you've been strong for too long."
Behavioral Signs of Burnout
11. You Procrastinate and Avoid Responsibilities
You know you need to do the thing. You know it's going to stress you out more if you don't do it. But you just... can't.
So you scroll social media instead of working. You watch TV instead of paying bills. You make excuses not to deal with important tasks.
This procrastination isn't laziness. It's avoidance. When you're burned out, everything feels overwhelming, so your brain tries to protect you by shutting down. Unfortunately, this only makes things worse in the long run.
12. You've Stopped Taking Care of Yourself
When was the last time you showered before you had to leave the house? When did you last wear something other than sweatpants? How many days in a row have you lived on coffee and takeout?
Self-care falls by the wayside when you're experiencing burnout. You don't have the energy to exercise, cook healthy meals, or maintain basic routines. You're in survival mode, and anything that's not absolutely required gets dropped.
The hiking trails sit unused. Your gym membership goes to waste. You can't remember the last time you did something just because it made you feel good.
13. You Isolate Yourself from Friends and Family
Plans with friends? Canceled. Family dinner? You make an excuse. Text messages? Ignored.
When you're burned out, social interaction feels like too much work. You don't have energy for small talk. You don't want to pretend you're okay. You just want to be alone.
So you stop showing up. You pull away. And your relationships start to suffer because of it.
The isolation makes burnout worse, creating a cycle that's hard to break. But recognizing this pattern is the first step to changing it.
14. You're Using Alcohol or Other Substances to Cope
"I need a drink" becomes your nightly mantra. Or maybe it's sleeping pills to turn your brain off. Or excessive caffeine to keep functioning during the day.
Using substances to numb feelings or to force your body to do what it can't do naturally is a warning sign that burnout has gotten serious.
This is different from having an occasional glass of wine to relax. This is relying on alcohol, drugs, or other substances because you can't cope without them.
15. You Think About Quitting (Everything) Constantly
Fantasizing about leaving your job. Thinking about ending your relationship. Wondering what would happen if you just moved to another city and started over.
You have constant escape thoughts. "What if I just disappeared?" runs through your mind more often than you'd like to admit.
These thoughts are a sign that burnout has taken over. When the life you're living feels unbearable, your brain starts looking for any way out.
If you're having these thoughts regularly, especially if they include thoughts of self-harm, it's time to reach out for help. Individual therapy provides a safe space to talk about these feelings and find healthier ways forward.
What Causes Burnout? Common Triggers
Understanding what causes burnout can help you recognize it earlier and take action before it gets worse. Most people experience burnout because of three main categories of triggers.
Work-Related Burnout
This is the most common type. You might be experiencing work burnout if:
You have no control over your work or schedule
Your job expectations are unclear or constantly changing
You work in a toxic environment with poor communication
You're doing the work of multiple people
You never get recognition for what you do
Your values don't align with what your job requires
Work burnout happens when the demands of your job consistently exceed your resources and energy.
Lifestyle Causes
Sometimes burnout comes from how you're living, not just where you're working:
You have no work-life balance (you're always "on")
You don't have a support system to help when things get hard
You're taking on too much in too many areas of life
You never rest or take time for yourself
You're trying to be everything to everyone
When your whole life feels like work, burnout is almost guaranteed.
Personality Traits
Certain personality types are more prone to burnout:
Perfectionists who can never do "good enough"
Type A personalities who can't slow down
People-pleasers who can't say no
High achievers who tie their worth to productivity
If you recognize yourself in these descriptions, you're not doomed to burnout. But you do need to be more intentional about rest and boundaries.
3 Types of Burnout: Which One Are You Experiencing?
Overload Burnout
Working harder and harder to meet impossible demands. Never stopping or slowing down. Sacrificing your health, sleep, and relationships for success. Always saying yes to everything.
High achievers, people in corporate jobs, healthcare workers, teachers, entrepreneurs, anyone in high-pressure environments
Set firm boundaries, learn to say no, actively reduce your workload, delegate tasks, prioritize rest
Under-Challenged Burnout
Feeling bored and unfulfilled at work. Not learning anything new or being challenged. Going through the motions with no sense of purpose. Your skills are being wasted. You feel like you're dying inside from monotony.
People in monotonous jobs, those in roles below their skill level, employees with no growth opportunities, anyone stuck in routine work
Find meaning in your current role, seek new challenges or projects, pursue learning opportunities, consider a career change
Neglect Burnout
Feeling helpless and incompetent. Nothing you do seems to work or make a difference. You get no support, guidance, or feedback. You're drowning and no one notices or cares. You feel invisible and inadequate.
People starting new jobs without training, employees with unclear expectations, those in toxic workplaces, anyone lacking proper resources or support
Seek proper training and mentorship, clarify job expectations, ask for regular feedback, consider if the environment is fixable or if you need to leave
💡 Quick Tip: You might experience more than one type of burnout at the same time. For example, you could be overloaded at work while also feeling under-challenged in your personal growth. Identifying which type(s) you're dealing with helps you choose the right recovery strategies.
Burnout vs. Depression: How to Tell the Difference
Here's where it gets tricky: burnout and depression share a lot of symptoms. The exhaustion, the lack of motivation, the feeling that nothing matters—these show up in both conditions.
So how do you tell them apart?
The biggest difference is scope. Burnout is usually tied to a specific situation, most often your work or a caregiving role. When you're away from that situation, you might feel a little better. Depression, on the other hand, affects every area of your life all the time.
Another difference: with burnout, you're depleted. With depression, you feel hopeless.
But here's what makes this confusing: you can have both at the same time. Chronic burnout can lead to depression. And if you're already dealing with depression, stress can push you into burnout faster.
The symptoms overlap enough that it's hard to diagnose yourself. If you're experiencing any of these signs for more than a couple weeks, or if they're affecting your work and relationships, talk to a professional. A therapist can help you figure out what you're dealing with and create a plan to address it.
You can schedule a consultation to talk through what you're experiencing.
What to Do If You're Experiencing Signs of Burnout
The good news? Burnout is reversible. It takes time and intentional effort, but you can recover. Here's how to start.
Immediate Steps You Can Take Today
You don't have to wait to start feeling better. These small changes can make a difference right away:
Set one firm boundary. Leave work on time today. Say no to one thing you'd normally say yes to. Turn off your work email after 6 PM. Just one boundary. Start there.
Take 15 minutes completely to yourself. Not "I'll scroll my phone while the kids play." Not "I'll eat lunch at my desk." Actual time where you're not doing anything for anyone else. Sit outside. Take a walk. Just breathe.
Talk to someone you trust. Call a friend. Text your partner. Tell someone, "I'm not okay right now." You don't have to go through this alone.
Use your surroundings. Sometimes a change of scenery helps reset your nervous system. Take a quick walk around one of the parks in Castle Rock. Stand outside for five minutes. Get out of the environment that's draining you, even if just for a moment.
If you need immediate relief from anxious thoughts, the 3-3-3 rule for anxiety is a simple grounding technique that works fast.
💪 Your "Start Recovery Today" Action Plan
Set your phone alarm to leave work on time today. Just today. Block 15 minutes on your calendar right now for "personal time."
Say no to one thing you'd normally say yes to. Cancel one obligation that's draining you. Take one actual day off.
Schedule a consultation with a therapist. Talk to your doctor about your symptoms. Have a real conversation with someone about how you're actually doing.
Longer-Term Recovery Strategies
Real recovery from burnout takes more than a weekend off. Here's what actually helps:
Reassess your priorities. Look at everything on your plate and ask, "What can I let go?" Not everything is as important as it feels in the moment. Some things can wait. Some things don't need to be perfect. Some things aren't your responsibility at all.
Build in regular rest. Not just weekends—though those matter too. We're talking about daily micro-breaks, weekly downtime, and longer periods to completely disconnect. Your body and brain need regular recovery time, not just occasional vacations.
Consider therapy to work through the causes. Burnout isn't just about being tired. It's often about deeper patterns: perfectionism, poor boundaries, trauma responses, or beliefs about your worth being tied to productivity. Working with a therapist helps you identify and change these patterns at the root.
If trauma is part of your burnout story—maybe from a past job, childhood experiences, or chronic stress—EMDR therapy can help process those experiences so they stop affecting your present.
Address the anxiety and stress underneath. Burnout often comes with high levels of ongoing anxiety. Learning to manage stress before it becomes burnout is key to long-term health.
When to Seek Professional Help
Some signs mean it's time to reach out to a therapist sooner rather than later:
If signs of burnout last more than 2-3 weeks
If you're having thoughts of self-harm or suicide
If burnout is affecting your work performance or your relationships
If you've tried to fix it on your own but nothing's working
If you're using alcohol or other substances to cope
Castle Rock and South Denver therapy options are available to help. You can work with someone in person or online, whichever feels more doable for you right now.
How Therapy Can Help with Burnout
Therapy isn't just for mental illness. It's for anyone who's struggling, stuck, or dealing with more than they can handle alone. And burnout definitely counts.
Here's what therapy provides:
A space to actually process what's happening. You can talk about how bad things really are without worrying about burdening someone or being judged. Your therapist is there specifically to help you work through this.
Tools that actually work. Not just "take a bubble bath" advice. Real coping strategies for stress, boundary-setting skills, ways to challenge the thoughts that keep you stuck. Practical tools you can use immediately.
Help addressing the root causes. Maybe it's perfectionism. Maybe it's people-pleasing. Maybe it's trauma from your past that's making current stress harder to handle. Therapy helps you understand why you're vulnerable to burnout and what needs to change.
Support while you make changes. Recovering from burnout often means making big changes—in your job, your schedule, your relationships, or your way of thinking about yourself. Having a therapist in your corner makes those changes feel more possible.
At South Denver Therapy, we offer both in-person therapy in Castle Rock and online therapy throughout Colorado. We work with people dealing with burnout, stress, anxiety, and the underlying issues that make them more vulnerable to exhaustion.
You can learn more about individual counseling and how it might help you recover from burnout.
Typical Burnout Recovery Timeline
You're recognizing the problem and making first changes. You might feel worse before you feel better as you stop pushing through. Start setting boundaries and reducing your load.
Energy starts coming back in small amounts. You have occasional good days. You're learning new coping strategies and addressing underlying patterns. Still exhausted but less numb.
Good days outnumber bad days. You're consistently maintaining boundaries. You start caring about things again. Energy is more stable. You're working on root causes in therapy.
You feel more like yourself. You've made sustainable changes to prevent burnout from happening again. You have tools to manage stress before it becomes burnout. Energy is restored.
Remember: This is a general timeline. If you've been burned out for years, recovery might take longer. If you caught it early, you might feel better sooner. The key is making real changes, not just resting.
Frequently Asked Questions About Burnout
How do I know if I'm burned out or just tired?
If rest helps and you feel better after a good night's sleep or a weekend off, you're probably just tired. Burnout doesn't go away with rest. You can sleep all weekend and still feel exhausted. Burnout also comes with emotional symptoms like not caring about things that used to matter, feeling cynical, and losing your sense of purpose. Regular tiredness is physical—burnout affects your whole life.
Can burnout go away on its own?
Not usually. Burnout is caused by ongoing stress, and unless something changes in the situation causing that stress, burnout tends to get worse, not better. However, with intentional changes—like setting boundaries, reducing your load, and getting support—you can absolutely recover from burnout. But it rarely goes away without you doing something different.
How long does it take to recover from burnout?
It depends on how severe the burnout is and what you do about it. If you catch it early and make changes right away, you might feel better in a few weeks. If you've been burned out for months or years, recovery could take several months of consistent effort. Think of it like recovering from a physical injury—the longer you ignored it and kept pushing, the longer it takes to heal.
Is burnout a mental illness?
No, burnout is not classified as a mental illness. The World Health Organization recognizes it as an "occupational phenomenon" related to chronic workplace stress. However, untreated burnout can lead to mental health issues like depression and anxiety disorders. That's why addressing burnout early is so important—before it turns into something more serious.
Can you have burnout and depression at the same time?
Yes. In fact, chronic burnout often leads to depression. The symptoms overlap a lot, which is why it can be hard to tell them apart. The main difference is that burnout is usually tied to a specific situation (like work), while depression affects all areas of your life. A therapist can help you figure out what you're dealing with and create a treatment plan that addresses both if needed.
What's the fastest way to recover from burnout?
There's no quick fix for burnout, but the fastest path to recovery involves three things: removing or reducing the source of stress, getting adequate rest (not just sleep, but real recovery time), and addressing the underlying patterns that made you vulnerable to burnout in the first place. Some people need to take time off work. Others need to set major boundaries. Most people benefit from working with a therapist to identify what needs to change.
Should I quit my job if I'm burned out?
Not necessarily. Sometimes burnout is about the job itself—toxic environment, impossible workload, values mismatch. In those cases, leaving might be the right move. But sometimes burnout is more about how you're approaching work—poor boundaries, perfectionism, inability to say no. If you quit without addressing those patterns, you'll just burn out again at the next job. Consider talking to a therapist before making big decisions to help you figure out what actually needs to change.
How do I prevent burnout from happening again?
Prevention is about creating sustainable rhythms in your life. Set clear boundaries between work and personal time. Build regular rest into your schedule, not just when you're already exhausted. Practice saying no to things that don't align with your priorities. Address perfectionism and people-pleasing patterns. Check in with yourself regularly about your stress levels. And get support—from friends, family, or a therapist—before things get bad again.
Where can I get help for burnout in Castle Rock?
South Denver Therapy offers both in-person therapy in Castle Rock and online therapy throughout Colorado. We specialize in helping people recover from burnout, manage stress and anxiety, and address the underlying issues that make someone vulnerable to exhaustion. You can schedule a free consultation to talk about what you're experiencing and see if therapy might help.
Does insurance cover therapy for burnout?
Most insurance plans cover therapy for stress-related issues, anxiety, and depression—all of which can be part of burnout. Since burnout itself isn't a diagnosable mental health condition, therapists typically use related diagnoses like adjustment disorder or generalized anxiety disorder for insurance purposes. It's best to check with your insurance provider and with the therapist's office to understand your coverage and any out-of-pocket costs.
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You Don't Have to Stay Burned Out
Burnout is real. It's serious. And it's incredibly common. But you don't have to live like this.
The signs of burnout are your body and mind trying to tell you something important: the way you've been living isn't sustainable. You need rest. You need support. You need something to change.
Recovery is possible, but it doesn't happen by accident. It happens when you recognize what's happening, admit you need help, and take real steps to address the underlying causes.
You don't have to do this alone. South Denver Therapy serves Castle Rock, Highlands Ranch, Littleton, Parker, Castle Pines, and the surrounding South Denver area. We understand what burnout feels like, and we know how to help people recover.
Ready to feel like yourself again? Schedule a free consultation with a therapist who understands burnout and can help you find your way back to a life that feels sustainable and meaningful.
