Practicing Wellness as a Graduate Student Part 1: Avoiding Burnout

Why is Burnout Important to Address Among Salus Graduate Students?

Individuals in the primary care industry and healthcare at large are at a higher risk for burnout than any other setting. Patients are negatively impacted by burnt out clinicians, as burnout leads to decreased empathy and decreased professionalism. These consequences likely tie into the negative impact burnout has on the healthcare system by way of decreased patient satisfaction, increased medical errors, and increased costs. Finally, and most importantly, burnout impacts each and every person individually. 

Identifying the Stages of Burnout

• Phase 1: “Honeymoon” Phase

  • This phase encompasses feelings of energy and optimism. Whether it is starting a new job or tackling a new task, there is a boost of productivity and increased creativity. 

• Phase 2: “Onset of Stress” Phase

  • There is a lack of recovery time during phase 2. Not every second of the day is stressful, but there are more frequent times when stress takes over. As this stage begins, take notice of physical or mental symptoms. Mentally, losing focus easily or being less productive when completing tasks is common. Physically, fatigue can set in, making it more difficult to sleep or enjoy activities outside of work. 

• Phase 3: Chronic Stress Phase

  • The point where stress becomes more persistent or chronic. Stress in this phase is likely to consistently and negatively affect work. Examples include feelings of apathy, not completing work on time, being late for work, or procrastination. Socially, withdrawing from work related conversations is common. In other cases, one may become angry and lash out at coworkers. Sometimes these feelings can be taken home and affect relationships with friends and family.  

• Phase 4: “Burnout” / “Crisis” Phase

  • This phase is when one reaches their limit and can no longer function as they normally would. Problems at work begin to consume a person to the point where they become obsessed over them. A person may feel numb and experience extreme self doubt during this stage. Physical symptoms include chronic headaches, stomach issues, and family and friends starting to notice changes. It is no longer only an internal feeling. 

• Phase 5: “Habitual Burnout” Phase

  • If left untreated, burnout can become a part of everyday life and eventually lead to anxiety or depression. It is also common to begin experiencing chronic mental and physical fatigue that prevent a person from working, which can put one's job status in jeopardy. 

Tips For Mitigating Burnout

• Taking Care of Your Body

  • Proper intake of food, water, healthy sleeping habits and exercise are all necessities for taking care of your body. It does not have to be training for a marathon, whether it is going from the library to the cafe, making one loop around campus, using the indoor track for a couple of laps; put on a podcast, unplug and get moving. 

• Go Outside

  • Other than not getting enough Vitamin D, getting outside of the classroom, your bedroom, etc. helps you recognize (in a helpful way) how small we are compared to the world at large. Getting outside can help to contextualize the overwhelming feelings. 

• Mindfulness

  • For those who subscribe to a particular belief system, this can include taking more time to practice a faith. Typically in graduate school, consistently practicing a faith or belief system gets put on the back burner. Even if the practice does not look the same as it did before, take time to maintain a practice as much as possible. 

• Taking Care of Others

  • Getting outside of oneself and taking care of others can have value in terms of self-care and management of stress and anxiety. Giving back to the community or those around us has the ability to separate ourselves from our stressors and give back in a meaningful way. 

• Finding Yourself

  • Who are you outside of a Graduate student? Who are you outside of a Salus student? What did you do for fun before Salus? Sometimes it is really hard to answer those questions, especially when in the thick of school, exams, work, etc. It could be being an athlete, a musician, an artist, loving to cook, whatever the identity is outside of school. Although it may not look how it used to, find some way to tap into what makes you, you. 

To avoid burnout, prioritizing self care and wellness is the first step to developing a healthy and sustainable school-life balance. For more helpful resources on wellness as a graduate student, visit the Center for Personal and Professional Development.

Information provided by Dr. Tamara April-Davis, CPPD director, and Dr. Cristina Laracuente-Trzaska, postdoctoral psychology resident.