The Hidden Cost of Burnout: The Body's Response to Depletion
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Burnout is more than just feeling exhausted—it’s a state of emotional, physical, and mental depletion that can significantly impact your well-being. Whether you're a parent, nonprofit worker, caregiver, entrepreneur or corporate professional, burnout can affect your nervous system, making it difficult to function, connect, and feel like yourself. At Radish Counseling in Arlington, TX, we specialize in helping individuals recover from burnout and restore balance through therapy and relationship.
What is Burnout?
Burnout occurs when chronic stress overwhelms your body and mind, leading to persistent fatigue, detachment, and reduced performance. Unlike everyday stress, burnout is long-term and can disrupt your ability to manage emotions, relationships, and responsibilities.
Dr. Brené Brown explains burnout as:
"chronic stress that has gone unprocessed, leading to exhaustion, cynicism, and a reduced sense of accomplishment."
Types of Burnout & How They Affect the Body
It is tempting to define burnout simply through the lens of professional work, but what we know is that burnout is often connected with experiences beyond and/or greater than just our professional identities. Burnout manifests differently depending on the demands placed on you.
"Burnout isn’t just about work—it’s about our inability to complete the stress cycle, leaving us stuck in survival mode." - Emily and Amelia Nagoski
Here are some common types and their impact:
👪🏻 Parenting & Caregiving Burnout
- Constantly feeling drained, irritable, or emotionally distant from your children.
- Nervous system response: Increased fight-or-flight reactions, leading to chronic stress and emotional dysregulation.
🏥 Nonprofit & Caring Professional Burnout
- Compassion fatigue from helping others, leading to emotional numbness or feeling unappreciated.
- Nervous system response: Overactive sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight), making it harder to relax or feel fulfilled.
🏛️ Corporate & Workplace Burnout
- Extreme mental exhaustion from long hours, high expectations, and lack of control over work.
- Nervous system response: Chronic cortisol release, which can cause anxiety, depression, and even physical illness.
💡 Entrepreneur Burnout
- Feeling overwhelmed by decision-making, financial stress, and work-life imbalance.
- Nervous system response: Increased hypervigilance, leading to difficulty winding down or enjoying downtime.
How do I know if I am experiencing burnout?
🥱 Emotional exhaustion and detachment
🛌 Chronic fatigue and difficulty sleeping
⚡ Irritability or mood swings
😶🌫️ Brain fog and difficulty concentrating
😰 Increased anxiety, depression, or hopelessness
🤢 Physical symptoms like headaches, muscle tension, or digestive issues
How Therapy Can Help with Burnout Recovery
At Radish Counseling, we use evidence-based approaches to help you heal from burnout by:
- Reconnecting with Your Body – ****At Radish, our approach to healing includes somatic therapy, supporting our clients in bringing awareness back into themselves. Often burnout demands disconnection from our whole selves. We work alongside our clients to relearn that their bodies are a voice worth listening to.
- Processing Emotional Exhaustion – Offering a safe space to unpack stress, frustration, and emotional overload.
- Building Resilience & Boundaries – We know that our clients are the experts of their own experiences. Our work together will help our clients to hear their own voices and not just the loud demands that burnout is placing upon them.
- Reconnecting with Joy & Purpose – We help our clients reunite with their own internal spark and help them to seek what fills their own cups.
Get Support for Burnout Today
If you’re feeling overwhelmed, exhausted, or disconnected, you don’t have to go through it alone. Therapy can help you reset your nervous system, regain clarity, and feel like yourself again. At Radish Counseling, we offer compassionate, trauma-informed therapy to support your burnout recovery.
📍 Serving clients in Arlington, TX, and beyond. Book a free consultation today and start your healing journey.
Schedule an Appointment Today
📞 Call: 214.702.8160
