6 Signs You Are Suffering From Emotional Exhaustion

Emotional exhaustion is a type of mental fatigue that can affect many areas of your life. 
Not only does exhaustion of this magnitude affect you emotionally and mentally, but 
physically as well. It makes it hard to focus and concentrate, hard to spend time with 
others, hard to do just about anything. 

Here are some signs of emotional exhaustion that you should be aware of.


1. You Have Trouble Focusing

Do you find that your ability to focus and concentrate on a task is getting worse? Maybe 
you can focus for a little bit, but not nearly as long as you used to. This might be a sign 
of emotional exhaustion. Having trouble focusing can come in many forms, so it’s not 
always as straightforward as not being able to get anything done.

You might find that you can focus for a few minutes at a time, but then your mind starts 
wandering.
You may be able to get your work done, but when it comes to anything around the 
house, you aren’t able to get anything done. If you are in school, you might doze off 
constantly when trying to study or do homework. 

Regardless of how it is happening, this could be a sign of emotional exhaustion.


2. You Are in a Constant State of Irritation

Being irritated and annoyed is a normal human emotion, but you can probably tell when 
it gets worse or when it never seems to go away. When it is from exhaustion or burnout, 
that irritation tends to be a constant state of moodiness. Every little thing bugs you, 
whether it is from your spouse, your kids, your pets, co-workers, friends, or neighbors.

You never really feel settled and relaxed, and you can’t let anything go without it 
bothering you deeply. It is often a more severe form of just being very touchy. 


3. You Have Regular Aches and Pains, Headaches, and Other Pains

Believe it or not, mental and emotional issues can develop into physical aches and 
pains. This is why when you are experiencing mental stress, you start experiencing 
physical issues, like not being able to sleep, neck pain from tension, headaches from 
the neck pain, and just overall body aches and pains.

The same thing can happen when you are struggling with emotional exhaustion. It tends 
to create a lot of tension and pain in your physical body. If you have aches and pains 
and no idea what is causing it, consider emotional reasons.


4. You Can’t Handle Any Amount of Stress

Everyone will go through stress on a regular basis, though the amount of stress you 
experience varies quite a bit. However, how you are able to handle that stress is what 
can determine is a healthy emotional wellbeing, or dealing with emotional exhaustion.

You probably know the difference between normal stress that is uncomfortable, but you 
can deal with, and stress while you have emotional exhaustion. Even if the situation 
causing your stress is similar, it seems so much worse. It is an instant reaction of your 
mind and body, where you absolutely cannot handle any of it. 


5. You Have a Lack of Motivation

In addition to not focusing or concentrating very well, you may also notice that you don’t 
have much motivation either. You might be able to do what is mandatory, like going to 
work every day, but your efforts are minimal and you typically can only do the bare 
minimum. 

You might suddenly have no motivation to exercise, run errands, or do self-care. You 
have no desire to do anything that isn’t working or sleeping, and possibly taking care of 
some of your more essential needs, but nothing else sounds interesting at all to you. 
Either that, or you feel so physically exhausted, you just can’t manage it at all. 


6. You Cancel Most Plans

Canceling plans very once in a while might not be a big sign of exhaustion or burnout, 
but canceling every plan or even most of them can definitely be a warning sign. A big 
sign of this is when you have weekly commitments with friends, such as Sunday brunch 
or going to the movies every Friday with your significant other, and you suddenly don’t 
want to go and keep canceling. 

Any time something seems unusual for you, it could be a sign of exhaustion, burnout, or 
another emotional issue you are dealing with.
