“How are you?” This was a common greeting, to which people would respond with “Good,” “Bad,” or just “Okay.” These days, we tend to automatically answer, “I'm tired.” When I ask why, no one tells me. Is it the amount of work? All the wars and conflicts around the world? Post-pandemic society? Inflation? What if it happened everywhere at once?
Exhaustion can make even the simplest tasks overwhelming. Returning clothes that don't fit, making plans, or emptying your email inbox doesn't mean you're lazy. Even though you're juggling work, family, and other responsibilities, your mind feels like it's too busy with other things. Sometimes there is no room for fun things. As Anne B. Petersen writes in her book, you just aren't into it. buzzfeed article, How Millennials became burnout: “Why can't I get this obvious thing done? Because I'm burnt out. Why am I burnt out? Because I internalize the idea that I have to work all the time.” Because it has become
Psychologist Emily Ballesteros writes in a recent paper: time If the United States experienced a “Great Resignation” (more than 47 million Americans voluntarily quit their jobs) after the pandemic, we are now living in a time of “Great Exhaustion,” according to a magazine article. According to Ballesteros, this fatigue is caused by an unsustainable lifestyle, exposure to uncontrollable stress, and financial insecurity. “We haven't built a society that puts human needs first. We've built a society that puts business needs first, and we're starting to see that… things get better. If we hold on to that hope, we can endure hardship with much higher morale. When we hear news that makes us feel like things aren't getting better everywhere we go, we start to crumble.''Economics Regarding anxiety, Ballesteros writes: “We've been a work-oriented society for generations. But it's becoming increasingly difficult to convince people to lead busy, work-oriented lives when it doesn't lead to the quality of life that they used to.” It’s starting to happen.”
“Many factors are contributing to this mental health crisis, but the truth is that it's the poor living conditions that make us feel less valued in the world.” , there is always pressure to perform better, leading us to believe that we are not trying hard enough or growing intellectually, socially, and personally. We are constantly being told to try harder,” said Spanish author Udal Espurga, who wrote a book about the global phenomenon of fatigue. Espurga said this exhaustion is not unique to any particular generation, but that millennials and Gen Z (who entered the workforce after the 2008 financial crisis) face adult life filled with constant anxiety. point out that
The term burnout was first identified as a psychological condition by psychologist Herbert Freudenberger in 1974 and is used to describe cases of physical or mental breakdown due to excessive work or stress. According to his 2023 report from Gallup, 44% of workers are stressed, which is a historically high number. In January 2022, the American Psychological Association noted that the stressors of the pandemic have created persistent and ambiguous challenges, resulting in increased physical fatigue as well as cognitive and emotional fatigue. “For many, the pandemic has felt like constantly struggling to stay above water, only to be hit by another wave,” Valentina Stoycheva wrote. psychology today article.
Similarly, Josh Cohen investigated: economist Is there more to burnout than working too hard? The roots of the problem, he argued, run deeper than that. The feeling of being completely exhausted but unable to shake off the urge to keep going can be compared to a dead battery. However, instead of charging when plugged in, the battery simply starts smoking. Or maybe this picture is a burnt matchstick with legs. I feel tired and exhausted from living in a society of collective fatigue.
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