To think people are feeling more exhausted and burnt out than a decade earlier

[Wheelsonbus]

From my own experience and observing the difference in behaviour from a decade ago, I feel people are feeling more and more exhausted and burnt out after COVID, the Ukraine war leading to rising inflation and CoL and just in general, people are feeling more tired and pessimistic. It's showing up on virtual forums like social media including MN as well as real life with people needing more time off sick.
I might be wrong but I am feeling much more exhausted and burnt out even though I have been in similar job but I am pregnant and have a toddler on top of everything else. COVID did take a toll on many people as well as public services getting worse is just adding to the frustration.

It's not Covid, it's whatsapp.

Yes. I do. I think we are more stressed. Jobs aren't secure. Health services are rubbish. Everything is so expensive and the world is in turmoil. I think the mental load is contributing to burnout.

I do think it's true in general, but I think the toddler and pregnancy will be much much bigger issues for you personally than any of the wider picture stuff. That's just an exhausting stage of life regardless.

Not sure if serious, but I agree it's mainly down to technology and connectivity. The past 10 years have been massive for explosions of apps and this falsehood that we need to know everything about everything all of the time. Its is truly exhausting.

It might be me but some of my friends seem to be more exhausted than they were earlier, most of us are in 30s.

Heck yeah. Life has become so much harder.

I think we underestimate how the recent changes have affected our overall mental wellbeing leading to increased burnt out.

And smart phones; always on culture, group chats with your neighbourhood some of whom you may have never spoken to in person, groups for work, clubs, school parents, extended family, your dh's extended family and even your dc's in law family; messages coming in by the hundreds over a week. Each commanding a piece of your headspace. Eating away at your reserves, slowly but surely. Social media is also is to blame. Everyone on SM is so shiny and happy. We know it's not real but our brains respond to it as if it were real, we feel the pressure to be... perfect. Perfect body, house, job, kids, insta worthy hobbies and holidays, everyone a winner. At the same time, incessant reports of sheer and utter depravation, conflict, violence and no rules apply warfare. Comforted only by our latest prettylittlething or white fox purchase. I fear humanity's humanity is being gradually eroded.

Yes it's true for many. Personally around me I just see people struggling with illness, poverty etc every day. They feel abandoned by health services and social care, every day is a struggle for them. Life is one long slog, pension age being put back and harder to save for retirement. Things were much simpler 20/30 years ago.

I’ve had autistic burnout since 2000. Haven’t worked a day since then and haven’t had a day where it hasn’t affected me . Exhaustion is just awful especially when it’s mental and physical (or mental but manifests as physical)

I agree, but I also think that we are faced with many stresses much younger.
Education has changed we are no longer colouring in in the afternoon,having a nap after dinner or playing out for extra time if it’s sunny (this was my primary school life) - the world is scarier or more informed about bad things happening so children don’t have the freedom to be children- unemployment has been an issue for as long as I can remember.
We don’t eat seasonal food we can eat whatever we like anytime and a variety of food is available that wasn’t.
my mother didn’t make memories with us, we played out and that was it (late 70s early 80s).
life just seems so much busier and stressful right from the start now and it simply never stops.
I just think we are all continually in the fast lane now and whilst I think the internet is a wonderful thing - it has added to the stress.

Things were not simpler, or better, in the past. I remember all the strikes in the 70s, power cuts, the 3 day week, high inflation, rocketing mortgage rates. Overt racism, sexism and homophobia. The fears over the Cold War. No time in history is perfect. No generation has an easier ride. Problems just change, that's all.
I think you just have to focus on trying to make your life as positive as possible, particularly if you have children. Everyone has struggles, but it's important not to think that the past was somehow better.

Its the bloody emails and messages. Schools send out scores per week. How did parents cope before the bloody internet. Perfectly well.

My point was ‘childhood’ was more innocent in many ways and thus the slow burn begins much earlier these days.

Could it also be getting old

No, it wasn't necessarily. Childhood is prolonged now. Like most of my friends, I had domestic responsibilities quite young, and care of younger siblings. We had a lot more stress in many ways. Most of my class left school at 16 with little chance of continuing education.
There was not a perfect past.

I agree that life in the past wasn't better or easier, but I do think that what OP says about the specific issue of burnout in modern times is correct too. I don't think any generation has had to juggle so much so intensely in day-to-day life, particularly the way connectivity makes it hard to carve out any meaningful downtime.

No. Imagine doing all the domestic tasks with no labour saving devices? No freezer, no automatic washing machine or dryer, no dishwasher, no microwave, no instant meals, probably no car.
Terry cloth nappies to wash. Fabrics harder to care for, clothes and shoes proportionately nore expensive.

I thought we were talking about the last decade, 2014 on. Why are people talking about ration books and black and white televisions?😂

That's not been my experience. I hadn't realised how close to burnout I was, until the pandemic hit and we went into lockdown. When everything stopped, I realised how close to collapse I was, and when it started again, I restructured my life a bit. I am less stressed now than I was before covid. I also don't see any difference in my friends, or colleagues.

I was a kid in the 80s, and I think the kids have it better now, personally. Mind you, I am getting towards the age of: "There were a hundred and fifty of us living in t' shoebox in t' middle o' road."

My life is ten times more difficult than 5 years ago. Money worries and work stress. The cost of living has impacted me hugely.

I'm exhausted and getting burnt out and I can't see a way out.

Like most of my friends, I had domestic responsibilities quite young, and care of younger siblings. Most of my class left school at 16 with little chance of continuing education.
These are not necessarily detrimental to overall well-being, on the contrary. Many young people strive with a proper job or apprenticeship at 16. We also move around less and are more overweight as a population.

I blame media and technology leading to burn out as rarely we get to enjoy a complete rest state. And also the state of this country, expensive accommodation, few rights for renters, no consistent healthcare.

Every lifetime has a period where things are just so much more difficult, prices soar, unemployment rockets, we hit a recession, hospital wait times get longer. Many people have already been through this before, it wasn’t highlighted quite so much as social media wasn’t around, you couldn’t just browse the web for information. In regards to burnout, I don’t think that’s a new concept, it’s just different now but still burnout all the same.

Yep. Myself and several friends/family been off sick with stress recently. All different professions.
There's much more pressure to have a good career, a perfect house, be an amazing parent, have a social life, hobbies, exercise, look good etc.

Plus I must have passively smoked about 40 cigarettes before I was about 12!
Don't get me wrong, I think there are challenges nowadays. There always are, and will be, unless you're a multimillionaire. I'm so glad that younger people don't have the problems I had, but I know they have different ones. I'm just saying it's not necessarily worse now than in previous times.