We have written about or mentioned burnout before, but the importance of continued awareness of it was driven home for me recently, and in disappointing and dramatic and very personal fashion. The source this time wasn’t typical compassion fatigue, exhaustion, or boredom. It came straight from “upstairs.”
As we’ve written before, the “biggest risk of burnout is the near constant exposure to the ‘flight or fight response’ inherent to the job (running code, engaging and managing the agitated, angry, and irrational, or any other of your responsibilities that can cause you to become hypervigilant). Add the very real tension of the politics and stresses inside the office and a dangerous mix is formed.” It was that, the “politics and stresses inside” - actually, a series of them - that tipped the scale
Burnout Defined
Burnout is “a depletion of oneself by exhausting physical and mental resources, excessively working toward unrealistic expectations that are self-imposed or societally expected.” Driven primarily by stress, it leaves us emotionally exhausted. For those involved in “people work” – under which policing certainly falls – burnout greatly diminishes enjoyment in both the work and personal settings.
The problem with unchallenged burnout is that its repetitive stressors lead to changes in the brain chemistry and density that affect emotional and physical health. By now we are all familiar with PTSD, know that a LEO’s exposure to trauma and extreme stress can lead to it, and probably even that it is a myth that one big traumatic event is what leads to PTSD. Instead, it is repetitive stressful events that cause burnout, depression, anxiety, and PTSD. And while political and performance stress may not lead to PTSD, traditionally, it is within the realm of possibility it will, and that severe burnout can be considered a form of PTSD.
To review, sources and examples of repetitive stress in the workplace can be:
• A lack of control in your personal life because of the inability to choose desired shifts or work hours and missing family events, holidays, and social opportunities repeatedly. • Being isolated from family and friends from not working a “normal” work schedule and having to work overtime at a moment’s notice. • An unsatisfying assignment or being passed over for a desired position. • Exposure to work personalities that are toxic to the organization (peers, supervisors, or administrators). • “Bureaucratic bullsh*t” that inhibits doing the job effectively and efficiently. • Extremes of activity ranging from boredom to chaos, and then back to boredom, very quickly. • The “duality of mind” necessary to be polite, professional, and respectful to a citizen while at the same time knowing this encounter could be “the one” you suddenly need to take his life to protect your own.
The Dangers
Unless effective coping skills and techniques are implemented quickly to combat burnout and its related stressors our overall health is compromised due to impaired immune system functioning, with consequences ranging from susceptibility to the common cold all the way to cardiac problems, digestive issues, and even cancer.
Science is learning PTSD is more than professional doldrums, it is an actual injury in the amygdala and other structures of the brain caused by the release of stress hormones. Knowing this, all officers should be trained on the signs and causes of burnout, how to recognize it, and how to implement self-care techniques in order to reduce its occurrence.
Identifying Burnout
To identify burnout, we recommend a self-assessment using this quiz (adapted from MayoClinic.com):
1.) Have you become cynical or critical at work? 2.) Do you drag yourself to work and have trouble getting started once you arrive? 3.) Have you become irritable or impatient with coworkers, customers (citizens) or family? 4.) Do you lack the energy to be consistently productive? 5.) Do you lack satisfaction from your achievements? 6.) Do you feel disillusioned about your job? 7.) Are you using food, drugs or alcohol to feel better or to simply not feel? 8.) Have your sleep habits or appetite changed? 9.) Are you troubled by unexplained headaches, backaches or other physical complaints?
Managing Burnout
Burnout is, frankly, a surety in our line of work, stemming from stressors on the street, in the station, a combination of both, or even diminished enjoyment in your personal life that bleeds over into work. It can be avoided or caught at its earliest signs, however, and by employing the following tactics and techniques we’ve long advocated, reversed even once it has set in:
1.) Play harder than you work, making sure pleasurable events in your life are just as intense as the seriousness of your job. Create time for laughter, fun, and excitement. 2.) Surround yourself with positive people, and cut out or limit contact with those negative people who fuel your burnout. You know who they are. 3.) Identity your areas of repetitive stress and develop a plan to build better resiliency, coping skills, and a plan of attack to manage the stress. 4.) Take care of your basic needs such as eating healthy, exercise, and getting enough sleep. Limit alcohol use since it is a depressant. Getting back to the basics of self-care is a crucial step in building and maintaining resilience. 5.) Have hobbies that are not related to law enforcement to provide balance. Be More Than a Cop! 6.) Volunteer in an organization where you know you are making a difference that takes you away from the police identity for a while.
I hit the wall suddenly and, really, not unexpectedly this month. I also identified the wave of burnout about to crash down onto me and am working at pivoting away. I went back to the basics we’ve practiced and taught for a long time, and it seems (once again) to be working. Stress will be a part of my life for a while, I may as well accept its companionship and go back to my training. It will be your time soon enough, so consider how you will meet the challenge.
Michael Wasilewski
Althea Olson, LCSW and Mike Wasilewski, MSW have been married since 1994. Mike works full-time as a police officer for a large suburban Chicago agency while Althea is a social worker in private practice in Joliet & Naperville, IL. They have been popular contributors of Officer.com since 2007 writing on a wide range of topics to include officer wellness, relationships, mental health, morale, and ethics. Their writing led to them developing More Than A Cop, and traveling the country as trainers teaching “survival skills off the street.” They can be contacted at [email protected] and can be followed on Facebook or Twitter at More Than A Cop, or check out their website www.MoreThanACop.com.
Althea Olson
Althea Olson, LCSW and Mike Wasilewski, MSW have been married since 1994. Mike works full-time as a police officer for a large suburban Chicago agency while Althea is a social worker in private practice in Joliet & Naperville, IL. They have been popular contributors of Officer.com since 2007 writing on a wide range of topics to include officer wellness, relationships, mental health, morale, and ethics. Their writing led to them developing More Than A Cop, and traveling the country as trainers teaching “survival skills off the street.” They can be contacted at [email protected] and can be followed on Facebook or Twitter at More Than A Cop, or check out their website www.MoreThanACop.com.
