Sorry, I Missed This: The Everything Guide to ADHD and Relationships with Cate Osborn Breaking the burnout cycle: What is burnout?
Sep 23, 2025
In this enlightening discussion, Dr. Shauna Pollard, a licensed psychologist specializing in burnout and ADHD, dives into the distinctions between burnout and depression. She highlights how perfectionism and ADHD hyperfocus can spiral into exhaustion and emotional depletion. Dr. Pollard shares early signs of burnout, emphasizing mindfulness and the importance of self-awareness. They also explore how systemic factors contribute to burnout and the significance of advocating for personal needs to foster recovery.
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Burnout Is A Capacity Collapse
- Burnout reduces capacity so tasks take more energy and motivation drops.
- It can be domain-specific or pervasive and often feels like running on fumes.
Burnout Vs. Depression: Different Pathways
- Burnout and depression overlap but differ in roots and thought quality.
- Burnout often follows prolonged overwork while depression can arise from varied causes.
Hyperfocus Then Collapse
- Cate describes hyperfocus cleaning for days then collapsing from exhaustion.
- That cycle of overdoing then crashing illustrates ADHD-linked burnout.