Collective Burnout

Collective burnout. The great exhaustion. Many of us have likely heard or read about these terms in recent months, or perhaps you’ve just stumbled upon it now, and it resonates with you. It validates your experiences and what you witness – in your home, community and workplace.

We experience loneliness, disconnection and being overwhelmed or overstimulated by the sheer demands of life as well as the never escaping negative information. It seeps into every facet of our lives - with family, our relationship with ourselves, and at work. Many spend more of their waking hours at work than any other place. Day to day, coworkers may talk about exhaustion, pessimism and being overwhelmed by our world today. Life feels like it’s getting more complicated and demanding.

We have co-workers who are also caretakers, juggling multiple jobs to pay the bills, being a single parent, or struggling with the depths of infertility. We sometimes talk about these things at work. We confide. Depression. Anxiety. Trauma. Grief. Addiction. We are also talking about these more. We are naming those mental health struggles and challenging stigma through connection and discussion. However, not everyone feels equipped to support someone or ourselves in those moments of declining well-being or crisis. This can leave us or someone we care about feeling lost or perhaps misunderstood.

Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is a curriculum that provides individuals with the knowledge, skills and confidence to identify these concerns and offer support. It's an opportunity for us to connect with coworkers who may be struggling, listen to their concerns, and help navigate them to the right resources. 

We all could use a caring coworker sometimes who check-ins on us. Let that person be you. We can challenge burnout at work through connection and MHFA support.