What is Burnout and What causes It?
In today’s world, many of us live in a perpetual state of being busy. Irrespective of its adverse impact on our health and wellbeing, leading life in this manner is often perceived positively.
Coined in 1974 by psychologist Herbert Freudenberger, the buzzword ‘burnout’ has been making its rounds around the office for years. It is only recently that the World Health Organisation (WHO) has officially recognised it as an “occupational phenomenon resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed” (WHO, 2019). According to WHO (2019), burnout can be diagnosed by “feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion; increased mental distance from one’s job, or feelings of negativism or cynicism related to one’s job; and reduced professional efficacy.”
So what actually causes it? Burnout stems from much more than a long day at work, and has been attributed to numerous occupational, lifestyle and personality factors.
rTMS Treatment for Burnout
Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) is a NICE UK, Health Canada and FDA approved non-invasive and drug-free treatment, which involves the use of electromagnetic pulses to stimulate under-active brain cells to work more effectively. The procedure does not require anaesthesia, hospitalisation, or recovery time, and has markedly fewer side-effects than antidepressant medication.
According to Van Noppen et al. (2020), rTMS significantly improves attention and memory, which tend to deteriorate with the onset of burnout. It targets the prefrontal cortex, which is the area of the brain that regulates mood, emotional wellbeing, motivation, and social skills. As opposed to merely treating the symptoms, it addresses the root cause of the problem by reorganising brain pathways and patterns. High-frequency rTMS on the left frontal lobe has stress-relieving and mood-elevating effects on patients suffering from occupational stress (In Kim et al., 2016). 75% of our clients have experienced significant improvement, while 45% report complete remission.
Neuromed Clinic now has advanced rTMS treatment (Thetaburst), which is the most up to date technology in treating burnout, depression and anxiety. If you have any questions about rTMS, please email lisa@neuromedclinic.com.
