By Unattainable goals and long hours can cause this disorder, which often leads to memory and attention difficulties, as well as poor job performance.
Sisyphemia is a mental health problem that can affect your work performance and lead you to make a heroic effort to fulfill your duties. Anxiety and mental and physical exhaustion are just some of its consequences .
Just like Sisyphus , condemned to eternally carry a rock to the top of a mountain, you feel trapped in exhausting tasks that you repeat over and over again. To avoid negative effects on your health, you need to identify the warning signs of this situation.
What is sisifemia and how to identify it?
The creators of this term, José Manuel Vicente and Aracel López-Guillén , see it as the suffering of the employee who is condemned to fulfill the mission of reaching an unrealizable goal. Every day he is a victim of the same condemnation and the impotence of not feeling capable of achieving it.
These researchers argue that sisyphemia is the mental exhaustion that arises when you push yourself to the limit to achieve an unattainable goal. It is associated with the obsession of always doing more, productivity dysmorphia, low self-acceptance and irrational ideas about success and good performance.
“Those who suffer from it repeat to themselves: ‘ Today I don’t feel that I have achieved the accomplishment, success in the task, or merit of the work, but tomorrow it will be possible if I do more . ‘ “
~ Vicente and Lopez-Guillen (2022) ~
There are several key signs that will help you recognize this disorder, which overwhelms your capabilities. This state of exhaustion is not a diagnosis, therefore, the symptoms indicated below should not be taken as an indication of an official psychopathology:
- Anxiety
- Dullness
- Memory problems
- Obsession with work
- Loss of performance
- Physical and mental fatigue
- Decreased introspection
- Lack of enjoyment or pleasure ( anhedonia )
- Lack of recognition of achievements
- Reduced attention and concentration
- Increase in working time without a break
- Feelings of inability to do tasks
These symptoms appear when you are a young employee or an experienced one, but in a new stage of training. They can also occur when you are an ambitious worker and do not take breaks or rest enough.
Causes of this disorder
There is no single cause that explains it, on the contrary, there are multiple psychological and contextual factors that, in interaction, lead to its appearance in your working life. Some of the most notable are the following:
- Unattainable goals . They make you try harder to achieve them, which depletes your physical and mental resources more quickly.
- Rushing to get things done . The daily rush contributes to the appearance of exhaustion, stress and self-demand .
- Long working hours . This reduces your rest time and increases fatigue. You also lose the balance between your personal life and work .
- Lack of balance between expectations and personal resources . Another cause is that high work demands are not consistent with your capabilities. This imbalance generates work accumulation, which makes you tired and demands more.
- Personality traits . Perfectionism , a high sense of responsibility, meticulousness and obsession are some of the traits of your personality that may be associated with this problem.
- Working conditions . Workers with temporary contracts, interns and freelancers are more susceptible to suffering from this condition, as they are affected by job insecurity: very low salaries and insecurity.
These causes generate and maintain your prolonged fatigue. In addition, they can cause you to suffer serious consequences for your physical and mental health, which affect your development at work and in other areas of your life.
What are its consequences?
One of the main effects is that it lowers your self-confidence and reduces your self-esteem . Doing a tiring activity and trying hard again and again, giving your best without achieving good results, makes you feel useless and incompetent.
The lack of progress and recognition, coupled with the constant repetition of fruitless work, is very demotivating. Over time, this makes you give up because, no matter how hard you work, you never manage to achieve your goals.
It also causes mental health problems such as depression, insomnia and anxiety . It also has negative consequences on your body: heart attacks, hypertension, arrhythmias, back pain, headaches, skin problems, diabetes and obesity.
Characteristics of “ sisifemic” works
This type of job is characterized by a work overload that pushes you to demand more from yourself than you already give. It also delegates a high level of responsibility to you that, if not carried out correctly, can have serious consequences.
These are usually tasks that you must complete in the shortest possible time . The rush in these jobs puts additional pressure on you, which makes you more tired. They are characterized by long and exhausting work days.
These jobs often impose impossible goals that you cannot achieve, no matter how hard you try. As a result, you invest more time, resources and effort, which drains your energy.
“In general, it is typical of ‘on-demand’ intellectual jobs, with a mental burden of urgency, concentration, continuous attention, high responsibility, and making urgent decisions (that cannot be postponed).”
~ Vicente and Lopez-Guillen (2022) ~
How to overcome sisyphemia?
Being stuck in a job where you give it your all, but it’s never enough, is very emotionally hard. Fortunately, you can deal with this situation so that your well-being does not continue to deteriorate. Here are some recommendations:
- Define your priorities . Learn to distinguish between what is urgent and what is not urgent at work, so that you don’t burn yourself out with superfluous activities. At home, focus on resting and doing activities that are a priority for you.
- Delegate responsibilities . Try not to take on all tasks by yourself. Ask for help from colleagues or delegate to lighten your workload.
- Set boundaries . Set clear boundaries so that you don’t have to use your break time to work. It’s important not to cross that line so that you don’t end up with extra chores at home.
- Set achievable goals . Be realistic and set SMART, concrete, and achievable goals . This way, you won’t put pressure on yourself to achieve something that’s impossible.
- Take care of your mental and physical health . Do activities that nourish your mind and strengthen your body. Eat healthy, exercise, meditate, spend time with friends, or take a relaxing trip.
It is also important for companies to take organizational measures to prevent mental fatigue and work overload . Some of these are as follows:
- Have flexible hours
- Set achievable and realistic goals
- Distribute responsibilities well
- Promoting well-being within the company
After all this, you may have the impression that sisifemia is the same as burnout syndrome . We want to tell you that, although they have common features, such as fatigue and excessive mental overload, they are different conditions that manifest themselves at specific moments in working life.
What is the difference between sisifemia and burnout ?
One of the main differences is that for sisifemia to occur, a shorter period of time must pass and it is caused by unattainable goals, daily rushes and long hours . On the other hand, burnout appears after a long professional career under high stress and pressure, and has its roots in chronic stress and not feeling valued at work.
The symptoms produced by sisifemia are anguish and anxiety , as well as a lack of enjoyment. Burnout, on the other hand, generates emotional exhaustion, feelings of emptiness, depersonalization, and professional disinterest . The sisifemic worker is generally young and has a short career. The burned-out employee usually has extensive experience and is always inclined to serve.
The burnout sufferer is devoted to work, body and mind, and constantly thinks that he does not do enough to accomplish his goal. Therefore, he does more than necessary and lives only to work. The burnout sufferer is always unmotivated, tired of working, worn out, disconnected from his work, and does not perceive work as something of his own, which is why he should make more effort.
Keep your health at work
Sisyphemia can prevent you from performing well both at work and in other areas of your life. Therefore, it is important that you know about it so that you can prevent its appearance or apply the corresponding measures to overcome it, if you suffer from it.
In this regard, we invite you to pay attention to warning signs such as fatigue, feelings of worthlessness and attention problems . Remember that, to take care of your well-being at work, you have the services of mental and occupational health experts at your disposal.