Averting and Reducing Burnout
When you’re overwhelmed and lacking inspiration, you could be experiencing burnout. Herbert Freudenberger, the man who coined the term, defined burnout as the extinction of motivation or incentive.
Today burnout is more prevalent and the definition has evolved. The World Health Organization defines burnout as “a syndrome resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.”
An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure—Transcendental Meditation provides both.
Burnout can devastate a woman emotionally, mentally and physically. One may experience relationship problems, depression and job dissatisfaction. Some people isolate themselves and turn to substance abuse. Faced with these symptoms, most people think their life will improve if they change their work or relationships–or everything–but that is usually unrealistic.
A more realistic and permanent solution is to find an effective means of eliminating current symptoms and ultimately preventing future burnout.
One such means is enjoyable, tangibly effective, and scientifically validated.
Transcendental Meditation allows the body to function in the opposite way than it does when you’re stressed. The mind effortlessly transcends (or goes beyond) the usual active level of thought to a calm, quiet, inner collected state of awareness. Simultaneously, your metabolic rate settles down, giving your whole physiology an experience of rest that is measureably deeper than ordinary relaxation.
Increase resilience to decrease burnout
Studies show that during the TM practice, stress and anxiety decrease. Indications of balance increase, including normalization of hormone levels and blood pressure along with significant improvements in diabetes, cholesterol, cardiovascular health and brain functioning.
As a result of daily practice of the TM technique, our body becomes more calm and flexible even outside of meditation, becoming increasingly more resilient to stressful stimuli that would otherwise cause burnout. Resilience is a state in which we have the inner resources that prevent us from burning out. You can meet your challenges without being overwhelmed.
Published scientific studies have shown that TM reduces burnout. One San Francisco school study, published in Frontiers in Education in 2021 showed that school teachers experience far less burnout after they learn the TM technique. Teachers noticed reductions in emotional exhaustion and improvements in depression, depersonalisation, and perceived stress from the regular practice of TM. Read study at https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2021.627923
More research on TM and burnout:
- Researchers based at Sarasota Memorial Hospital found clear statistical evidence that the TM technique can decrease burnout and secondary traumatic stress while increasing resilience and compassion satisfaction among nurses. Journal for Nurses in Professional Development 2019.
- The effect of Transcendental Meditation on employee stress, depression, and burnout: a randomized controlled study was published in Permanent Journal in 2014.
- In 2022, the Journal of the American Medical Association published a study called Efficacy of Transcendental Meditation to Reduce Stress Among Health Care Workers. The research found that TM significantly reduced chronic stress, particularly burnout, suggesting that TM could be an effective strategy to prevent or mitigate chronic stress, and potentially burnout, among HCWs.