You used to love your job and find your work fulfilling. These days? Not so much. You find yourself unmotivated at work, frustrated with your coworkers, exhausted at the end of each day, and dreading having to go back to work the next. You even have trouble sleeping at night because you find yourself tossing and turning thinking about work.

If you find yourself feeling this way, you may wonder whether you’re depressed, burned out, or something else entirely. While burnout and depression are both mental health issues that need to be addressed, there are distinct differences between the two. Understanding these differences can help you better comprehend what you’re grappling with and what to do about it.

Burnout & Depression

Burnout is a result of chronic workplace stress. Researchers have identified these three core components of burnout: 

• Emotional exhaustion: Feeling drained, depleted of emotional resources, and overwhelmed.

• Cynicism: Having a negative attitude and detached feelings towards your work, and even those you work with.

• Lack of professional interest: This can also show up as feeling like the work you do doesn’t matter or that your work is unappreciated.

There’s a good reason that many people wonder if they have depression or burnout. There’s a big overlap between the two. Both burnout and depression are characterized by:

• Changes in sleeping patterns

• Increases in irritability or frustration with others

• Unrelenting fatigue and exhaustion

• Trouble focusing, especially at work

• Feelings of helplessness, apathy, or cynicism

It might be burnout if…

• Your feelings of exhaustion are primarily related to work and don’t extend to other areas.

• Changes in sleeping patterns align with your work schedule, for instance, sleeping better on weekends and poorly on work nights.

• Your loss of motivation and interest in achievement is related to work, but you still feel motivated in other areas of your life.

• Your feelings of worthlessness, apathy, or cynicism are mostly focused on work, and you still feel a sense of purpose in other areas of your life.

• You experience fulfillment in other areas of your life outside of work, like hobbies, relationships with others, and home life.

• You don’t experience any thoughts of death or suicide.

It might be depression if…

• Your feelings of hopelessness and negative thoughts extend beyond work and relate to yourself, the world, and your future.

• Issues with sleep are pervasive and don’t seem to align with your work schedule.

• You’ve lost interest in work-related tasks, as well as activities and hobbies you used to enjoy.

• You have a hard time finding joy and fulfillment anywhere.

• You experience negative self-worth both within and outside of work contexts.

• You’re experiencing thoughts of death or suicide.

Ultimately, although there are some differences between depression and burnout, the course of action you should take to get support is relatively similar. A professional can help differentiate between the two and develop a treatment plan with you. 

Managing the Symptoms

Whether you’re burned out or struggling with depression, getting support from others is the key to healing and improving your well-being. 

Work with a therapist

The best person to help you figure out if you’re depressed or burned out is a licensed mental health professional, like a therapist or a counselor. A trained professional is an expert in diagnosing and treating mental health conditions like depression and burnout. They can help you develop coping mechanisms and can deliver evidence-based treatment to help you feel better.

Octave has hundreds of therapists who are trained in treating both burnout and depression.

Talk to your doctor

If you’re struggling with low energy and changes in sleep, this could be a sign of a medical condition like a thyroid issue, vitamin deficiency, or a sleep disorder. It’s worthwhile to consider reaching out to your doctor to rule out any physiological factors that might be contributing to how you’re feeling.

Open the conversation up with your boss

If you have a good relationship with your boss, it could be worthwhile to share what you’ve been struggling with. Especially in cases where a high workload might be negatively contributing to your well-being, having an open conversation with your boss can lead to positive changes, like delegating some responsibilities to a colleague. Initiating this kind of conversation can be a first step in reducing your stress and improving your well-being.

Lean on your support networks

Let your friends, family members, and loved ones know what you’re struggling with. If there are specific things they can do to help you, let them know. If you just need a friendly ear to listen or vent to, ask them to support you in this way. When you’re struggling, it can feel like you need to figure everything out on your own, but the reality is that the more people you let in, the more support and help you will have in healing.

Recognizing whether you're dealing with burnout or depression is an important step toward taking control of your mental health and well-being. While burnout tends to be work-related and depression impacts all areas of life, both can have serious consequences if left unaddressed.