The pressure that comes with technology

The fact we can basically communicate at all hours, thanks to email and phones, makes it feel like you’re never completely off the clock. “We live in an age where everyone is expected to be switched on 24/7, and our ‘busy’ lives can lead us to feel in a constant state of overwhelm,” Eskenzi explains. And when this is met with inadequate rest and recalibration, she adds, resilience fatigue can accumulate.

A reluctance to feel our feelings

It’s totally understandable to feel that talking about your emotions, mental health and human needs is taboo in the workplace. At the same time, that vibe isn’t helpful — which is especially important for employers to know and address.

Pereda validates how much of a struggle this can be. “Being sad or worried now has the connotation of being unproductive when it comes to meeting goals at work,” she says. “We are afraid of adding more problems to the current ones, and showing our emotions can have a negative outcome with regard to keeping our source of income.”

Given the barriers and the fast pace of work and everyday life, she explains we may turn to “quick fixes”… that ultimately don’t work, unfortunately. “We are trying to solve a complex emotional situation with simple positive and motivational solutions we find on social media, a quick conversation or in a three-minute motivational video.”

Having to ‘mask’

We must remember that neurodivergent folks are even more likely to struggle with this type of fatigue “due to the constant ‘masking’ that has to be undertaken to survive and thrive in most workplaces”, Eskenzi emphasises.

Basically, those individuals have to hide or suppress their neurodivergent traits — whether that’s struggling with time management, organisational skills or something else — which can exacerbate feelings of tiredness and burnout.

Feeling extra burnt out at work? Resilience fatigue is real – here’s how to handle it