Social burnout: Experts discuss exhaustion from interpersonal relationships

While the World Health Organization (WHO) defines burnout specifically as chronic workplace stress that is not successfully managed, experts are discussing the phenomenon of social burnout in private life.

Psychologist Amelia Aldao notes that individuals often feel pressured to attend social events, creating a cycle of guilt where they either attend and feel exhausted or cancel and feel guilty. This can lead to a burnout spiral: as cognitive flexibility decreases due to exhaustion, individuals may attempt to force more social interaction to keep up, which further intensifies their fatigue.

Common symptoms of burnout include feelings of exhaustion, listlessness, increased mental distance or negative attitudes, and reduced performance, such as a lack of concentration. However, the WHO maintains that the term burnout should be reserved for professional contexts rather than other areas of life.