Have you ever experienced burnout? If yes, you aren’t alone. A survey by Gallup found that 28% of workers said they were burned out more often than not and 48% sometimes felt burned out – and this was pre-pandemic! While managing your chiropractic practice, it’s important to know if you are burned out or are approaching it and what you can do to stop it. Here are our tips.
What Is Burnout?
Burnout is, generally speaking, workplace stress that cannot be managed and can have a physical and/or mental impact on the person. Burnout is more than stress on the job and has symptoms associated with it including depression, high blood pressure, and trouble sleeping.
Am I Experiencing Burnout?
The Mayo Clinic has developed questions to help people assess if they are approaching burnout and has done a lot of work to help employees avoid burnout – especially those in the medical field. Some questions to ask yourself are:
Are your sleep habits different?
Are you having difficulty concentrating?
Are you having trouble being productive due to a lack of energy?
Have you become cynical or critical at work?
Are you satisfied with your professional achievements?
Do you have trouble getting the day started and have to drag yourself to work?
Are you irritable or impatient with clients, co-workers, or customers?
Is your job making you feel disillusioned?
Do you use food, alcohol, or drugs to feel better about work or to avoid thinking about it?
How to Stomp Out Burnout
There are several strategies put into play by healthcare facilities and hospitals to help nurses, doctors, and healthcare providers avoid burnout including:
Constantly re-evaluate: Don’t lose sight of your priorities. Think about different areas of your life such as your hobbies, family life, and career as pieces of a giant pie. One half of the pie is how your life is sliced and the other half is how you’d like it to be sliced. You can work toward preventing burnout by tailoring each day in a way that reflects how you want your pie to be sliced, now how it really is. Make time to do things that are important to you to create a balanced lifestyle and enjoy that pie!
Talk it out: If you are experiencing difficulties at your chiropractic practice, reach out to trusted colleagues or your chiropractic coach! Feelings of isolation intensify burnout, and you don’t have to deal with your challenges alone. Chances are there are other people feeling the same way as you that can help you through it.
What’s Next?
If you are struggling to manage your chiropractic practice, our experienced chiropractic coaches can help. Whether it’s burnout, pandemic challenges, or general management, we are here for you. Click here to contact us for a free practice analysis to help you thrive both professionally and