Stress & Burnout
Compassionate support for stress and burnout, available in person in Saint John and Woodstock and virtually across New Brunswick.
Burnout Doesn't Always Look Like Exhaustion
Thoughts
✓ Difficulty concentrating or making decisions
✓ Constantly thinking about work or responsibilities
✓ Feeling ineffective or unable to keep up
Feelings
✓ Irritability, frustration or emotional numbness
✓ Feeling overwhelmed, discouraged or disconnected
✓ Losing motivation or enjoyment
Body
✓ Persistent fatigue or low energy
✓ Headaches, muscle tension or digestive discomfort
✓ Changes in sleep or appetite
Everyday Life
✓ Withdrawing from people or activities
✓ Struggling to complete routine tasks
✓ Working longer while accomplishing less
You may recognize several of these experiences or only one or two. Stress and burnout look different for everyone, and you don’t have to wait until you feel completely exhausted or unable to cope to seek support.
What Stress & Burnout Can Feel Like
Stress can sometimes motivate us or help us respond to challenges. But when pressure continues without enough time to recover, it can begin to affect your energy, mood, relationships and overall well-being.
- Feeling constantly overwhelmed or under pressure
- Difficulty relaxing, even when you have time to rest
- Feeling exhausted but unable to switch off
- Becoming more irritable, impatient or emotional
- Losing motivation or feeling disconnected from your work
- Struggling to concentrate or make decisions<br>
- Feeling as though you are never doing enough
Burnout can leave you feeling exhausted, disconnected or overwhelmed, even when you appear to be coping. Therapy can help you understand the strain and begin restoring balance.
When Stress & Burnout Start Getting in the Way
Stress is a normal response to pressure, change or demanding circumstances. But when ongoing stress or exhaustion begins affecting your health, relationships, work or ability to enjoy daily life, additional support may help.
- Everyday tasks begin to feel overwhelming
- You struggle to concentrate or make decisions
- Work follows you into your personal time
- You withdraw from people or activities you enjoy
- Rest no longer leaves you feeling restored
- Your physical or emotional health begins to suffer
You don’t have to wait until you reach complete burnout. Support can help you recognize what needs to change and create a more sustainable way forward.
How Therapy Can Help With Stress & Burnout
Therapy for stress and burnout is not simply about learning to tolerate more pressure. It can help you understand the patterns contributing to exhaustion and make changes that support your well-being.
Depending on your needs, therapy may help you:
✓ Recognize your personal signs of stress and burnout
✓ Identify sources of pressure and unrealistic expectations
✓ Set healthier boundaries at work and at home
✓ Develop practical strategies for managing stress
✓ Make space for rest without guilt
✓ Reconnect with activities and relationships that restore you
Your therapist will help you find realistic, sustainable changes that fit your needs, responsibilities and circumstances.
What Stress & Burnout Therapy Might Look Like
1. Understand what contributes to the strain
Explore the pressures, expectations and patterns that may be keeping you overwhelmed or depleted.
2. Develop practical ways to cope
Learn strategies for managing stress, setting boundaries and responding to your needs with greater self-compassion.
3. Create a more sustainable way forward
Work toward meaningful changes that support your energy, well-being and ability to feel more present in everyday life.
Together, you and your therapist can explore practical ways to reduce overwhelm, rebuild your energy and create greater balance in your daily life.
Frequently Asked Questions
Stress often involves feeling overwhelmed, tense or unable to switch off. Burnout may develop after prolonged stress and can leave you feeling exhausted, disconnected or less able to manage everyday responsibilities.
Not necessarily. Your therapist can help you consider what changes may be realistic, whether that means taking time away, adjusting expectations, setting boundaries or finding new ways to manage ongoing demands.
Yes. Therapy can help you focus on what is within your control, strengthen coping strategies and explore ways to protect your well-being while navigating difficult circumstances.
No. Burnout can also develop from caregiving, parenting, school, relationship pressures or carrying too many responsibilities without enough support or recovery time.
The length of therapy varies depending on your needs, circumstances and goals. Some people benefit from short-term support, while others choose to explore longer-standing patterns contributing to stress.
Yes. We offer virtual therapy throughout New Brunswick, as well as in-person appointments in Saint John and Woodstock.
Related Resources on Stress & Burnout
Meet Some of Our Therapists Who Support Clients With Stress & Burnout
Anna Mattie, MSW
Registered Social Worker
Anna offers compassionate, nonjudgmental support for youth aged 16 and older and adults experiencing stress, overwhelm or burnout. Drawing on ACT, CBT, Narrative Therapy and IFS-informed approaches, she helps clients recognize their strengths, develop healthier boundaries and work toward meaningful, sustainable change.
Caitlin Iles, LCT-C
Counselling Therapist
Caitlin offers compassionate, holistic support for teens, adults and couples experiencing stress, overwhelm or burnout. Drawing on approaches such as ART, IFS, CBT and ACT, she helps clients strengthen self-compassion, establish healthy boundaries and reconnect with greater balance in both mind and body.
Nancy Savoie, MSW
Registered Social Worker
Nancy offers warm, hopeful support for people experiencing stress, burnout, anxiety or other complex challenges. Using an individualized approach that blends empathy, humour and a range of therapeutic methods, she helps clients make sense of their experiences and find strategies that work for their lives.
You Don't Have to Navigate Stress & Burnout Alone
Stress and burnout can leave you feeling overwhelmed, exhausted or disconnected from the things that matter. We can help you connect with a therapist who will support you in restoring balance and finding a more sustainable way forward.