Burned Out and Overwhelmed? Try the GAIN Technique

Burnout is more than just a feeling of being overwhelmed. Untamed, it can present a real medical risk. Today, my guest is Dr. Greg Hammer, an intensive care physician, Stanford University professor, and author of the book GAIN Without Pain: The Happiness Handbook for Medical Professionals. He shared his simple, medically-backed framework for conquering burnout and finding your happier, healthier place.

I'll summarize our discussion here. But, as always, I encourage you to listen to the full interview by clicking on the audio player above or listening on your favorite podcast platform to gain every nuance.

What is burnout? Why are so many of us feeling it?

Dr. Hammer began by defining burnout as "a state of emotional and physical exhaustion, which is related to stress."

"People who are burnt out are often cynical," Dr. Hammer said. "They tend to depersonalize. They often have low self-esteem. They are impatient. They may ... blow up and be temperamental. Yes, it is a huge problem now as ever. But I think, since burnout is a stress-related phenomenon, and the stress related to this COVID pandemic is so ... global and so persistent. ... People have been under stress, which has now gone from acute stress to chronic stress, which has significant deleterious physiologic effects."

Dr. Hammer explained that stress is often associated with poor sleep which, in turn, leaves us drained of the energy we need to make good choices. So, our diet and exercise begin to suffer, creating a “vicious cycle” that leaves us unhealthy and exhausted.

If you can’t change your circumstances, you can GAIN your way to health

I asked Dr. Hammer how he advises patients who may know they are burned out but don’t feel empowered to make a change right now. Maybe they’re afraid to leave their job amidst a pandemic, or caring for ailing family members, or worried about paying the bills. What can you do when you feel unable to move away from the situation causing your burnout?

Dr. Hammer developed a four-part framework in response to that very challenge. The framework, GAIN, is an acronym for its four core principles which are:

G - Gratitude

A - Acceptance

I - Intention

N - Nonjudgment

Gratitude

Experiencing gratitude amidst a crisis can be difficult. But it’s all about staying present and maintaining a sense of perspective.

Although the coronavirus pandemic is scary, Dr. Hammer explained that we're in a better place now than our ancestors were over 100 years ago. We may be navigating a scary...

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