Most people who come to us with burnout start by apologising for it. They assume they should have coped better, worked smarter or simply needed a holiday.

Burnout is better understood as a mismatch. It grows when the demands on you stay high for a long time while rest, control over your work and recognition stay low. Willpower doesn’t fix a mismatch.

In therapy we usually start smaller than people expect: sleep, one boundary at work, one thing that used to feel like yours. Recovery tends to come from many small changes rather than one big decision.

Dread on Sunday evenings, numbness where you used to care, getting ill every time you stop: these are worth taking seriously. A free first call is a good place to talk them through.