Understanding Burnout and How IFS Therapy Can Help
In this article, I'll look at burnout through an Internal Family Systems lens, exploring how our parts can show up during long-term stress (and actually increase our risk of burning out) and how we can start recovering from burnout.
Before we dive in, I want to acknowledge that while some people are at a higher risk for burnout due to their neurotype (such as Highly Sensitive Persons or autistics) or due to their personality traits such as conscientiousness, I believe that the root causes of burnout are structural issues in our culture, society and workplaces.
While we can work with our own parts so that we can recover from burnout and better advocate for our needs and set boundaries, we can't control all structural issues that lead us to burn out.
Ultimately, it's the employers that have a responsibility to create healthy and sustainable work environments. Sometimes the best (and the only) thing we can do is to switch jobs.
Common Manager Parts That Are Linked to Burnout
Many of us have manager parts that have served us well in the past with studies and work. These parts work hard, have perfectionistic tendencies and want to perform well. They maybe got us through school and helped us get to the point where we are now with our career.
However, the jobs that these parts are doing in our system can actually increase the risk of burnout. When we experience stress and have no opportunity to recover, these parts tend to get more extreme, try to work even harder, take on more tasks, and ignore our needs.
Common manager parts that can get more extreme during long-term stress:
Striving/achiever/perfectionistic parts
Hold ourselves to a high standard
Struggle with mistakes or not doing things perfectly
Spend a lot of time on tasks to ensure they are done as well as possible
People-pleasing/helper parts
Take on all tasks asked of them by colleagues or managers
Struggle to say no when asked to take on more
Fear of disappointing others or making colleagues' lives harder by not helping them
Parts that avoid conflict and confrontation
Struggle with setting boundaries
Are anxious about speaking up for their needs
Worry about being seen as demanding or difficult
Try to blend in and be like everyone else
The Role of Firefighter Parts in Burnout
As we start nearing burnout, our system realises that the strategies used by our manager parts are not working anymore.
This is when another set of protector parts called firefighters takes over. Firefighters show up when our current strategies fail, and vulnerable, exiled parts of us overwhelm us with strong emotions. The purpose of the firefighter parts is to put out the fire, any way they can.
In the context of burnout, firefighters can bring on feelings of numbness, depression, and disillusionment. They can get into conflicts with colleagues or avoid them altogether.
At its most extreme, firefighters can take over to the extent that we experience a total collapse and are not able to work anymore.
Most people who have gone through burnout remember that one day when they just hit a wall and were not been able to go on anymore. This is a great example of firefighter parts at work, trying to protect our system from the overload that stress has been causing us.
IFS Therapy Approach to Burnout
Burnout significantly impacts our nervous system, and it may take a long time for it to return to a more resilient state.
During the acute phase of burnout, IFS therapy focuses on working with parts that have difficulty relaxing, slowing down, or not taking on more responsibility. The aim is to get all parts on board with the healing process so that the system can gradually recover.
IFS therapy will help you to identify the different manager and firefighter parts linked to stress and burnout. The goal of the therapy is not to get rid of these parts or to force them to step down from their roles, but to form a trusting relationship with them that paves the way for deeper work.
In a burnt-out system, internal conflict and polarisation are often present. Manager parts may strongly dislike the firefighters that have come in and shut the system down, forcing individuals to seek support or take sick leave. Giving away tasks or taking sick leave may trigger parts of us that feel incompetent, not good enough, or inherently wrong.
Building trust with both the managers and firefighters will help us get closer to the vulnerable, exiled parts that are being protected.
These may be parts that don't feel good enough or feel like something is inherently wrong with them. Hard-working manager parts often protect young parts that only got praise when they achieved something or did well at school.
By healing our vulnerable parts, our protectors do not have to work as hard, allowing for more space and balance in the system. This can later help people to advocate for their needs in their current workplaces or find a better fit for their unique needs and values.
