10 Common Caregiver Burnout Symptoms To Watch For
Caregiver burnout is a state of exhaustion that goes beyond normal caregiver stress. It can be physical, mental, and emotional. You may feel so exhausted that rest doesn’t help. It’s common in caregiver burnout to feel overwhelmed, depressed, or even angry.
The cause of burnout is persistent, long-term stress. The consequences can be serious: mental health conditions and poor physical health. Burnout can also interfere with your ability to provide good care. You can prevent compassion fatigue and burnout, but first, you must know the signs.
Here, we’ll describe ten common symptoms of caregiver burnout. If you have these symptoms, reach out for help. The earlier you address caregiving stress and burnout, the better the outcomes.
To learn more about how to manage caregiver burnout and talk to others going through it, check if you have free access to Trualta.
Signs & Symptoms
1. Difficulty Sleeping
It’s not unusual to experience sleep disturbances with caregiver fatigue and stress. Difficulty sleeping is a cause for concern if it:
- Persists
- Doesn’t allow you to feel rested
- Prevents you from feeling well or providing good care
Sleeping difficulties as a family caregiver might include:
- Trouble falling asleep at night, even when you’re tired
- Waking up in the middle of the night
- Struggling to fall asleep again after waking
Sleep disturbances can be early signs that something is wrong. Getting enough sleep is essential for mental health, and not getting good sleep can worsen caregiver stress and burnout.
2. Changes In Appetite or Weight
Caregiving responsibilities can take up a lot of time. You might find yourself missing meals sometimes. This isn’t unusual. However, you shouldn’t lose your appetite. You should still be hungry and eager to eat when you have the time. It’s also concerning if you start to eat more to cope with stress and gain weight.
These are both concerning mental and physical symptoms. Significant changes in weight or appetite can be signs of depression, a common consequence of caregiver burnout.
3. Getting Sick Often
Studies show that short-term stress can boost immunity, protecting you from illness. But, as stress worsens or becomes chronic, it lowers your immunity. If you don’t manage the stress caregiving causes, you might get sick more often. Your illnesses, even just a cold, might last longer or feel more severe than usual.
According to research, chronic stress that changes your social role or identity can be especially damaging to the immune system. This often happens with family caregivers, who find themselves in a new role without the skills to manage it.
4. Anxiety Or Depression
It’s normal to feel anxious or sad sometimes when caregiving. A particularly difficult day can naturally leave you feeling a little down. Decisions about palliative care or assisted living might make you feel nervous or anxious, even guilty.
It’s normal to feel stressed as a caregiver, but these feelings shouldn’t be intense or constant enough to interfere with your daily life. You could have a mental health condition if you can’t get out of a depression, or if your anxiety overwhelms you. These can be signs of caregiver burnout.
Some other mental health symptoms to watch for include:
- Feelings of guilt
- Difficulty getting simple tasks done
- Poor sleep
- Mood swings
- Weight changes
- Persistent negative attitude toward your role and your care recipient
5. Persistent Fatigue
Providing home care for a loved one or care recipient can be tiring. It can be fixed with adequate rest. This is normal. What isn’t normal is extreme fatigue. You should be concerned if you feel so tired or exhausted that you can’t complete normal daily caregiving tasks.
Physical exhaustion is not typical or healthy. Your fatigue may also feel like mental exhaustion. These are signs of burnout.
Caregiver fatigue can be caused or worsened by:
- Stress
- Not eating well
- Lack of exercise
- Sleep disturbances
- Being busy with tasks and duties
6. Difficulty Concentrating
Difficulty concentrating might be a temporary issue when you’re very busy. It becomes a sign of burnout if it:
- Happens often
- Is extreme
- Prevents you from getting important tasks done
It might be triggered by a lack of sleep or too many responsibilities, but this can also be a sign of depression.
Other related signs should also cause concern. For example, you might feel paralyzed when faced with your responsibilities and unsure of how to manage them. You might also have memory difficulties, forgetting appointments or daily caregiving tasks.
7. Losing Interest In Activities & Socializing
Many burnout signs are mental, and they can affect your social life. Losing interest in things you normally enjoy is a sign of depression. Depression can also make you withdraw socially, spending less time with friends or family.
While these signs don’t necessarily mean you have depression, they are worrying. They could mean you don’t have time, and that your caregiving duties have become overwhelming. They can be a sign that you aren’t taking enough time for self-care or breaks. Adequate caregiver support should allow you time for yourself.
8. Feeling Angry Toward Your Care Recipient
It’s normal to feel frustrated or even angry with your loved one sometimes, especially if you’re the primary caregiver. Emotions are natural responses to a tough situation. These difficult feelings are often more common when the care receiver has dementia.
On the other hand, escalating or irrational anger isn’t normal and should be concerning. If you struggle to find compassion or kindness for your loved one, you could be heading toward burnout. Feeling angry and frustrated more than caring could also be a sign of burnout.
9. Losing Control Emotionally Or Physically
Those difficult emotions can easily escalate when you’re in a state of burnout and chronic stress. If you’re healthy and well, you should be able to manage feelings of frustration and find appropriate outlets for them.
Burnout can cause you to explode or lose control. You might have emotional outbursts of crying or yelling. Losing control physically is especially concerning. It can be dangerous for both you and your care recipient.
10. Abusing Substances To Cope
Managing caregiver burnout, difficult feelings, and stress is essential for staying well. If you can’t find healthy ways to cope, you might turn to harmful behaviors. Alcohol or drugs might seem like a quick fix, but they only cause more harm.
If you find yourself turning to substances to cope with the difficulties of caregiving, you could be heading for burnout or already there. Substance abuse is bad for physical and mental health. It will worsen all other burnout symptoms and lead to serious consequences.
| Safety Tip: Thoughts of self-harm or of harming your care recipient may occur with other burnout symptoms. These can be signs of serious mental illness that can be dangerous for you or your loved one. They should be addressed immediately. Reach out to a mental health professional, your doctor, or a loved one you trust. |
Prevent & Manage Caregiver Burnout
The best way to avoid harm is to prevent caregiver burnout. Support is one of the best ways to prevent the chronic stress that can lead to caregiver burnout. Ask for practical help from others. Get emotional support from a caregiver support group. Take time to rest, eat well, exercise, and enjoy your social life.
Respite care can be a great way to find more time for personal care. Respite care is short-term, quality care, often from a professional caregiver, that gives family caregivers time off. Use respite care services regularly and without guilt. It’s good for you and your loved one.
If you already feel burned out, reach out for professional help. Let other loved ones take over some of your caregiving duties. Work with a trained therapist or other mental health professional to recover and help you find healthy ways to cope.
Don’t forget to check if you have free access to Trualta for more resources on managing caregiver burnout.
References
- Cleveland Clinic. (n.d.). Caregiver burnout. Cleveland Clinic.
- American Heart Association. (n.d.). What is caregiver burnout?
- Segerstrom, S. C., & Miller, G. E. (2004). Psychological stress and the human immune system: a meta-analytic study of 30 years of inquiry. Psychological bulletin, 130(4), 601.
