Curt and Katie talk about the idea that burnout and depression could actually be the same thing. We look at how stigma and a sense of superiority may inhibit clinicians from reporting that they’re actually experiencing depression rather than “burnout.”
It’s time to reimagine therapy and what it means to be a therapist. To support you as a whole person and a therapist, your hosts, Curt Widhalm and Katie Vernoy talk about how to approach the role of therapist in the modern age.
In this episode we talk about:
The blog article that sparked the conversation about why doctors don’t get depressed
The idea that burnout and depression may be the same thing
The functionality of diagnosis in treatment and how it impacts what one is diagnosed
The definitions of burnout and depression and the different schools of thought
The place of elitism both in the definition and the treatment of burnout
A sense of superiority and or a feeling of higher level on the hierarchy leading to less burnout and depression
Katie’s ideas around simple burnout or complicated burnout and the overuse of that word
Where the ideas around burnout actually came from and whether it is a sound foundation
The medical model divorcing depression from situational factors
The concern that pop psychology may have invaded the space
The idea that when people have sought the situation that has led to burnout or depression – there is an existential crisis
The rationale that it is “worth it” because we have sacrificed to move forward in our career
Tips from Freudenberger (who introduced the concept of Burnout) on how to avoid or treat burnout: hiring, work culture, thoughtfulness about work and work day, breaks and vacations, staff development and feeling time, sharing experiences, time off to learn, adequate staffing, balance of physical exercise
