Stress - Anxiety - Burnout: Isn’t It All The Same?

Feeling something, but don’t know how to explain it? 

It is difficult to feel something and not know how to handle it, but it is more difficult to feel something and not know what it is. It is easy to confuse the symptoms between stress, anxiety, and burnout.

Stress and anxiety are extremely similar, but here’s the difference: stress is often external, whereas anxiety tends to be an internal response. The National Institute of Mental Health defines stress as, “Stress is the physical or mental response to an external cause, such as having a lot of homework or having an illness. A stressor may be a one-time or short-term occurrence, or it can happen repeatedly over a long time.”  

Calm Clinic

Anxiety differs from stress in its intensity and duration. Anxiety tends to be future focused; it is about the “what ifs.” The feeling of anxiety can continue even after the stressor is removed and can cause significant impairment such as panic attacks.  

Burnout is what happens over time if stress does not get managed in its early stages. Stress develops into chronic stress and eventually leads to burnout. Burnout makes people feel as though they are running on fumes. Your mind and body begin to feel like it is in autopilot. 

The symptoms of stress, anxiety, and burnout are quite similar. Take a minute to READ THIS ARTICLE to gain a better understanding of the differences.

For support and guidance throughout your college career as an LSU student-athlete, reach out to your resources.

It’s often the hardest step, but the most rewarding.

Sport Psychology & Counseling: GeauxBeWell@lsu.edu