Preventing Burnout Before It Starts

Burnout has become part of our everyday language. We all know what it feels like to be overwhelmed and exhausted, but what we don’t always talk about is why prevention matters just as much as recovery.

As a mental health clinician and MBSR teacher, I often describe stress in terms of a scale: one is calm and resourced, ten is the absolute worst. Many of us hit a ten multiple times a day without realizing it. Each time, our nervous system flips into fight, flight, or freeze. When this happens over and over, it can create chronic stress, health problems, and emotional dysregulation.

The key isn’t to avoid stress altogether—that’s impossible. The key is learning how to notice when you’re heading toward ten and having strategies to bring yourself back toward the middle of the scale. That’s where mindfulness and therapy come in. These practices help you identify your baseline, explore what supports you, and permit yourself to step back before stress takes over.

Many workplaces now offer wellness programs—gym discounts, meditation apps, and quiet rooms. These can be valuable, but they’re only helpful if employees actually have the time and bandwidth to use them. Supporting mental wellness means going further, creating space for practices like therapy and mindfulness that help employees sustain balance and resilience over time.

Burnout doesn’t have to be inevitable. With the right tools and support, we can prevent it from becoming chronic and create a healthier culture where people can thrive both at work and beyond.