By Madison Avenue TMS & Psychiatry - Published on December 19, 2025

Last updated on December 19, 2025

Let’s face it: Contemporary work life can be incredibly stressful. There’s the “always on” expectation brought on by mobile devices, Zoom fatigue, tight deadlines, long hours, the constant pressure to be more productive — and increasingly, the gnawing fear that your job could be replaced by AI. 

Workers are feeling the strain: A recent survey found that an astonishing two-thirds of American employees are feeling some level of burnout, the highest level ever recorded in a poll. Burnout is especially acute among younger employees — Gen Z and Millennials — who have the least seniority, are struggling financially and began their careers around the disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

With so many people self-reporting as burned out, it’s natural to ask: What’s the difference between burnout and depression? And can you experience both?

To answer that question, it’s important to first define burnout.

What is Burnout?

The World Health Organization formally recognized burnout in the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11) in 2019 — though unlike major depressive disorders, it’s considered an occupational phenomenon, not a medical condition. 

“Burn-out is a syndrome conceptualized as resulting from chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed,” WHO explains, adding that it’s characterized by three dimensions: 

• Exhaustion or depleted energy
• Cynicism or feeling mental distance from one’s job
• Reduced efficacy at work

Other signs of burnout include:

• Feelings of self-doubt, defeat, failure, or helplessness. Burnout can feel like you’re on your own and incapable.
• Physical burnout symptoms, such as getting sick often, having body aches or recurring headaches, losing appetite, or insomnia. 

Some symptoms of burnout — extreme exhaustion, reduced performance at work and at home, feeling down, and an inability to focus — overlap with signs of depression. That can make it tricky to diagnose and distinguish from other mood disorders.

Given this overlap in symptoms, it’s not hard to see how burnout and depression can coexist. While people who are burned out don’t necessarily have depression, they may be at higher risk of developing it.

The Role of Stress

Burnout results from prolonged exposure to work-related stress. Yet as Psychology Today explains, the two are not the same: 

Under stress, you still struggle to cope with pressures. But once burnout takes hold, you’re out of gas, and you’ve given up all hope of surmounting your obstacles. When you’re suffering from burnout, it’s more than just fatigue. You have a deep sense of disillusionment and hopelessness that your efforts have been in vain. Life loses its meaning, and small tasks feel like a hike up Mount Everest. Your interest and motivation wane, and you fail to meet even the smallest obligations.

It can be helpful to imagine a continuum, with stress on one end moving to burnout, and on to depression — though some studies suggest that the greater degree of one’s burnout, the more stress they are likely to experience at work, suggesting the progression can be fluid and not always linear.

How Is Burnout Treated?

Unfortunately, bills unfortunately don’t pay themselves, so it’s important to address burnout and try to fix it, so you can resume being productive and things don’t spiral into more serious depression.

Because burnout is associated with work, recommended fixes tend to focus on making workplace changes, not on changing the person suffering from burnout. They include: 

• Talking openly with your supervisor about your mental health, if possible, and discussing ways to make your workload more manageable
• Setting new priorities for work that help you reframe how you feel about your job
• Incorporating stress management practices into your organization’s schedule, or taking quick personal moments to destress throughout the workday
• Getting enough sleep, which is important to physical and mental health
• Eating well and getting regular exercise, which are also important for mental health
• Finding ways to relax outside of work, like yoga or meditation, that counter stress
• Finding support from friends, family or coworkers

Of course, in some cases, there may be no fixing the workplace problems that are creating burnout, due to a toxic culture, a bad boss, financial pressures, and so forth. In those cases, the best remedy may be to find a new job — or even a new line of work. But that may be easier said than done for someone who is feeling exhausted, down, and is unable to focus.

If burnout is becoming a problem and is holding you back, therapy is often a good option. If you experience symptoms of depression and you’re in New York City, contact us at Madison Avenue TMS & Psychiatry to learn how we can help get you back on track. 

Madison Avenue TMS & Psychiatry