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CNN Vital Signs shows how to identify symptoms of Burnout syndrome

Emotional exhaustion, lack of energy and low professional fulfillment are just some of the symptoms that characterize Burnout syndrome.

The condition, defined by the World Health Organization (WHO) as “resulting from chronic stress associated with the workplace that has not been adequately managed”, has come to be recognized as an occupational phenomenon.

“Burnout is characterized in three dimensions, which are emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and low professional fulfillment. THE emotional exhaustion , her characteristic is an exhaustion. The image that we can make is of a matchstick that burned until the end. So, in terms of fuel, it ran out”, explains psychologist Miryam Mazieiro, from the Institute of Psychiatry at the University of São Paulo (USP).

Burnout Syndrome is the theme of CNN Vital Signs From this week. The rerun of the program, presented by cardiologist Roberto Kalil, will air this Sunday (7), at 7:30 pm, reinforcing the diversified content with the brand CNN Soft .

Different factors contribute to people staying “connected” to work longer. New technologies, the great competition in the job market, the need to produce more and faster and the increase in the modality of working at home, the home office, are some issues that make it difficult to disconnect the mind.

For experts, this routine can accelerate physical and emotional exhaustion. “The term Burnout was created a long time ago, it is more or less 50 years old. And it serves to designate a set of symptoms, changes that people feel when they are exposed to prolonged stress at work, which they cannot deal with in a positive way”, explains Eduardo de Castro Humes, coordinator of the Outpatient Clinic of the Division of Psychiatry. and Psychology at Hospital das Clínicas de São Paulo (see interview in the video above ).

Psychiatrist Alexandrina Maria Meleiro, from the National Association of Occupational Medicine, says that Brazil has become fertile ground for the development of Burnout Syndrome.

“Brazil is the first country in the world in the anxiety index – 9.3% of Brazilians have anxiety. And it is fifth in the world for depression, second only in America to the United States. So, we have a very high incidence, a prevalence of depression and anxiety and of course this affects the worker. On average, 30% are on leave and it is one of the reasons for the most incapacity for the worker”, says Alexandrina.

In the episode, cardiologist Roberto Kalil talks to Catarina Dahl, a consultant on mental health, alcohol and other drugs at the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and the WHO, about including the syndrome in the list of occupational diseases recognized by the entity.

Diagnosed individuals now have the same labor and social security guarantees provided for other occupational diseases. Catarina highlights how some professions were more likely to have workers affected by the syndrome during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“There are a number of professions that are, shall we say, more common to observe this type of phenomenon. Health workers, subjected to situations of extreme stress, having to deal with very significant losses, with fear of contamination, with uncertainty, sometimes with working conditions that are not favorable”, he points out.

In Rio de Janeiro, the team from CNN conversation with an Olympic athlete, who also suffered from Burnout: gymnast Flávia Saraiva.

“I had the syndrome in 2019, it was a year that brought a lot together. Many competitions, there were more than ten competitions, and for gymnastics it is a lot. I ended up having a knee injury and I was a little discouraged”, says Flávia.

“I went back to training, I was very tired. I started to have a lot of difficulty sleeping, I slept a maximum of three hours a night. For those who train 7 hours a day, they need to sleep at least 8 hours of sleep a night, and I didn’t sleep at all. I arrived at the gym and cried, I was afraid”, completes the gymnast.

To get out of this dynamic, the gymnast reports that she needed to understand and accept what she was going through. “The people who helped me a lot were my coach, my training colleagues, my psychologist, my family, because I needed that hug”, recalls Flávia.

The episode also features other cases of Burnout Syndrome and new treatment models for the condition.

Signs may indicate mental health problems

Source: CNN Brasil

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