Ep#177 Chronic Stress vs Burnout

Are you “just” stressed, or quietly burning out?

In high-stakes careers, chronic stress can feel normal—even expected. But when left unchecked, it turns into burnout: a state of emotional, mental, and physical depletion that affects your performance, relationships, and health.

In this episode, Dex explores:

• The key differences between chronic stress and burnout
• How elite professionals unknowingly normalise stress
• 10 workplace and societal forces that accelerate burnout
• The 12 warning signs you're slipping from stress into burnout
• Why burnout erodes your relationships—including the one with yourself
• What to do when rest and recovery no longer work

If you've lost your spark, your drive, or your confidence—don’t wait. Burnout is not a personal failure. It's a sign you're running out of fuel in a system that never lets up.

✅ Book a free consultation with Dex at dexrandall.com
✅ Share this episode with a friend or colleague who’s struggling
✅ Subscribe, rate and review the show to help more professionals find support

Resources mentioned:

• Free burnout consultation: dexrandall.com

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Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction
• 0:23 Understanding Chronic Stress vs. Burnout
• 2:28 Factors Contributing to Stress Escalation
• 5:52 Self-Test: Are You Stressed or Burning Out?
• 7:43 Key Differences Between Chronic Stress and Burnout
• 8:49 Invitation to Seek Support

Transcript

[00:00:00] Hi everyone. My name's Dex Randall, and this is the Burnout to Leadership Podcast where I teach professionals to recover from burnout and get back to passion and reward at work.

[00:00:22] Hello my friends. This is Dex and welcome to this week's episode where we're going to explore the difference between chronic stress and burnout. And the distinction really can be quite subtle, but it's crucial. I really want you to understand clearly, so you can take better care of yourself, protect your wellbeing, and maintain your performance over the long term.

[00:00:46] Protecting the asset -you -ensures your quality of life, your contribution and your reward, both at work and beyond. You stay at the top of your game and have more fun doing it.

[00:00:59] If you do enjoy the practical tips in today's episode, which are always free, please share it with your friends who are also feeling stressed. Plus subscribe, rate, and review the podcast because this is how we reach out and support more people struggling with chronic stress and burnout. Thank you. And remember, if you need incentive for this, up to 77% of professionals are burning out at any given time.

[00:01:27] So are you stressed or burning out? What answer popped into your mind just now? Did it make you nervous?

[00:01:36] For most professionals, honestly, it is hard to tell. Stress is so normalized and expected in many workplaces. Overload creeps in unnoticed. We push harder to get through it, or ignore it all together because admitting to struggle feels like failure. We often tolerate unreasonable pressure or poor behavior at work just to avoid what we see as defeat.

[00:02:02] After all, we are paid to stay at the helm, right? We can't let the side down.

[00:02:07] But chronic stress is a precursor to burnout. When it goes on too long, when it exhausts you beyond your capacity, your resources are depleted. Resilience tanks, you start shutting down, withdrawing, self-protecting, and that's the slide into burnout.

[00:02:28] So let's look at what contributes to stress escalation, just to see if you can relate.

[00:02:35] So, number one, The normalization of stress: cultural, parental, educational, gender-based, industry-wide, leadership models, even social media all tell us that stress is normal, that we should really just suck it up.

[00:02:53] Number two, Status pressures: In elite professions like law, medicine, finance, or consulting status is earned through education, through leadership, visibility, decision making, performance, power, and the illusion of never failing. You are told you can't be successful if you take your foot off the gas. Even though social media tells you to work a three day week and meditate before lunch.

[00:03:23] Number three, Masculine identity expectations: Be the rock, inexhaustible. Always fixing, always on top. Never show weakness, never fail.

[00:03:36] Conversely, number four, Women's burdens: the expectations that they will handle everything, career, domestic load, caregiving, emotional labor, often without help, without complaint, and without time out for self-care.

[00:03:51] And number five, Young professionals: Many of them feel abandoned by previous generations. The promise of education is also broken. They're entering a world of economic instability, environmental anxiety, and skyrocketing stress. Burnout is rising amongst students and graduates too.

[00:04:12] Number six, Cumulative stress effects: Look beyond work at relationships, health, hobbies, sleep, digestion, downtime. Are any of those affected? That's a red flag.

[00:04:28] Number seven, Imposter Syndrome: When your motivation and mood drop, your inner critic gets louder. Guilt and shame often creep in. You question your value. Here's a reminder -only high achievers experience Imposter Syndrome. Other people tend not to worry so much about it. So is your ego beating you down with a lie?

[00:04:54] Number eight, Barriers to understanding: Our training tells us that stress is part of the job and there's stigma around needing help. We equate burnout with failure or weakness, and this blinds us to what's really happening.

[00:05:09] Number nine, No clear solution: We tolerate a toxic environment because we don't see another option. Stress is endemic in some industries and people who speak up are often punished, so we stay silent and suffer.

[00:05:25] And number 10, Refusal to seek help: High achievers pride themselves in self-reliance. We don't want to ask for help. It feels like weakness, but here's the truth. Every successful person has mentors. No one thrives alone.

[00:05:43] If you are burning out, I would be honored to help mentor you back to balance and peak performance because I already believe in your power and potential.

[00:05:52] So here's a little self test. You can just check in on how you feel. Is it just stress for you or are you burning out? And the 12 questions I'm going to ask you offer awareness, not self-judgment. Be kind to yourself. You are not weak. Burnout is endemic, up to 77% of professionals are affected. So here are the questions.

[00:06:17] Number one, how long have you been experiencing stress? Weeks, months, years? If it's the latter, then you are at risk from burnout.

[00:06:27] Number two, was your training or education highly stressful?

[00:06:33] Number three, are you finding it harder to show up and get things done?

[00:06:38] Number four, are you avoiding difficult tasks or people, especially where you feel you failed?

[00:06:45] Number five, has your passion for work diminished?

[00:06:49] Number six, is your mood persistently negative, irritable, anxious, or overwhelmed?

[00:06:55] Number seven, do you feel disrespected, overruled, or powerless at work?

[00:07:01] Number eight, are your relationships at home suffering? Or do you feel emotionally unavailable to them?

[00:07:08] Number nine, is your physical health taking a hit? Things like sleep, nutrition, illness, drinking, pain.

[00:07:17] Number 10, have you stopped doing what you love? Hobbies, friends, nature, fun.

[00:07:23] Number 11, do you feel isolated even when you're surrounded by people?

[00:07:28] And number 12, do you avoid uncomfortable feelings? With habits like snacking, drinking, binge watching, or scrolling.

[00:07:37] If you're related to some of these, you might be moving from ongoing stress into burnout.

[00:07:43] So what's the difference?

[00:07:45] Chronic stress can be short-term and situational. If you are generally well and bounce back after a tough project, that's different. It can even be energizing stress. Burnout, however, stems from long-term unresolved stress that depletes you.

[00:08:04] When recovery strategies, sleep, nature, time off, stop working, it's time for a deeper intervention.

[00:08:11] Burnout as well happens in an environment of loss. Loss of what restores and nourishes you. And burnout is relational. You don't burn out alone even if it feels that way. The people and relationships that once fed you stop doing so, and then the inner critic is the only voice left. It's not kind, uh?

[00:08:35] So eventually your relationship with yourself becomes the casualty, and yet even in solitude, you don't feel safe. And no matter how introverted you are, you still need love, connection, safety, and joy.

[00:08:49] So when you listen to all of that, if any of it sounds like where you are now, I want to invite you to get support from someone who truly sees you, your power, your potential, and your good heart.

[00:09:02] And that's the work I do. I'm a hundred percent in your corner. You are not broken. You're a high achiever who's been overwhelmed by pressure and stress. Let me help guide you back to your energy, joy, and confidence. This is about getting your mojo back in full.

[00:09:21] If you're interested, come and talk to me at dexrandal.com.

[00:09:26] We'll create a personal plan to get you back to your A game, guaranteed.

[00:09:30] And that's it for today. Thanks for listening. I'm sorry if you are in chronic stress, but if you are, something can be done. Please share again this episode with friends and rate or review the show. That's how we spread this message to more people who are struggling, and I will catch you next time with more burnout-busting ideas.