Why Denial is So Common in Burnout
Denial is an unhelpful yet entirely understandable response to workplace burnout. Here’s why
Burnout is a sneaky, insidious experience. Even when I was on the cusp of full burnout, I denied vehemently that anything was wrong. That’s because acknowledging that I was not ok — that things were far from the grimaced “fine” I uttered when people asked — would entail making some drastically different decisions about my working life.
And I did not feel ready to make those decisions.
Instead, I denied the issue. Until I collapsed at an airport, and was presented with no option but to acknowledge the reality of the situation. I was in total burnout.
Denial is understandable
Burnout often happens to highly intelligent and capable people. So this apparent lack of self-awareness is not about a lack of intelligence. It’s often about an over-attachment or enmeshment with our work identity.
“If I’m not in this job, who even am I?”
There’s nothing wrong with loving your work and being invested in what you do. These are great things. But when work forms the sole facet of your self-identity, denial can become a close friend.
