Am I Burnt Out?

Burnout is a syndrome resulting from chronic workplace or life stress that has not been successfully managed. It is characterised by three dimensions: feelings of energy depletion or exhaustion, increased mental distance from one's work along with cynicism or negativity, and reduced professional effectiveness. It develops gradually rather than suddenly, and it does not resolve with ordinary rest once it is established.

The core burnout symptoms are exhaustion that rest no longer repairs, emotional detachment or cynicism toward work and people, and a declining sense of your own effectiveness. These are commonly accompanied by disrupted sleep, difficulty concentrating, irritability, loss of enjoyment, and physical signs such as headaches, digestive problems, chronic tension or frequent minor illness. No single symptom confirms burnout — the pattern and its persistence are what matter.

Not exactly. Stress is typically a short-term response to pressure that resolves when the demand subsides. Burnout is what happens when that pressure becomes chronic and the capacity to recover is progressively eroded. It is characterised by deep exhaustion, emotional detachment, and a loss of efficacy that does not resolve with ordinary rest. Recognising the distinction matters, because interventions that help with stress alone are often insufficient for burnout.

They share symptoms — exhaustion, low motivation, poor concentration, emotional detachment — which makes them difficult to separate without a professional assessment. The clearest difference is context: burnout centres on work and typically eases somewhat when you are genuinely away from it, while depression extends across work, relationships and other areas of life and tends to persist regardless of setting. The two also overlap, so experiencing burnout does not rule out depression.

This burnout test is a self-assessment tool, not a clinical diagnosis. It is designed to help you reflect on your experience and consider whether professional support may be helpful. For an accurate clinical assessment, we recommend speaking with a qualified specialist.

Your answers are not stored on our servers and are never shared with any third party. No account or personal information is required to complete this burnout test or to see your result on screen. If you choose to have your result emailed to you, we use that email address only to send it to you.

A high score suggests your experience may benefit from structured professional support rather than rest alone. Speaking to a specialist — confidentially and without obligation — is a meaningful first step. Our admissions team is available for a private conversation on +44 737 938 8256, at no cost and no commitment.

In mild cases, meaningful rest can offer some relief. But for individuals experiencing moderate to significant burnout, time off alone rarely produces lasting recovery. Burnout develops through structural imbalances — in workload, boundaries, values, and nervous-system regulation — that require structural intervention. At Oasis, our holistic programme is designed to address these root causes alongside evidence-based therapies, somatic work, and specialist coordination, to support genuine and lasting recovery.

You can read the questions to help you reflect on changes you have noticed in someone close to you, but the result should not be treated as an assessment of another person — the statements are written to be answered from your own experience. If you are concerned about a partner, family member or colleague, our admissions team can advise on how to approach the conversation and how to support someone who may not yet feel ready to seek help.