Terms such as executive burnout, washed out, used up, and burned out are often used in the work force to describe Adrenal Fatigue brought on when someone can no longer respond adequately to the demands of their job. Middle executives, secretaries, and teachers are examples of professionals who suffer from "sandwich stress." This is stress that comes from having to meet the demands and expectations from above and below without the power or authority to make the necessary changes or to do their job effectively. It is frequently the person in the middle who takes the blame when things go wrong but not the credit when things go right.
People in this position commonly have more than their share of health problems. They often suffer from Syndrome X (a complex of signs and symptoms that includes glucose intolerance, increased triglycerides, low HDL cholesterol, insulin resistance, hypertension, central obesity, and accelerated athrosclerosis). These disorders reflect the effects of stresses that produce elevated cortisol levels. However, sometimes this phase is followed in time by a drop in cortisol levels to below normal, as the adrenals fatigue and are less able to respond to the stress.
As this happens, job performance suffers and burnout begins. At first the person is able to cover for little slips in memory and job function. However with the progression of Adrenal Fatigue, personal productivity declines, tolerance decreases and emotional outbreaks become more frequent or have to be controlled with more effort. These people feel they have to push themselves harder to accomplish the same work they did with ease before and sometimes others have to cover for them. Actually job performance is usually one of the last things to completely deteriorate. Relationships often suffer first. Marriage dissatisfaction may be deeply pronounced and people with Adrenal Fatigue may become socially withdrawn. They can feel trapped with no safe place to retreat to at work or home. As a result they may act more aggressive or withdrawn, even though they are feeling more vulnerable. Frustrations and fears build up and frequently there is a "final straw" that precipitates burnout or full-blown Adrenal Fatigue. Several illustrations of job-related burnout are given in Adrenal Fatigue: the 21st Century Stress Syndrome by Dr. James Wilson.
The bottom line is that most of this is preventable. Take the Burnout Questionnaire in the Questionnaire section of this website if you are in danger of burning out and read Chapter 12, 13 and 15 of the book on Lifestyle, Food and Dietary Supplements for help with recovering from or preventing this problem. If you have not already taken the questionnaire in the book, do so to find out how far down the path of Adrenal Fatigue you have traveled. Then take the dietary supplements listed in the Programs for Adrenal Recovery section that are appropriate for your level of Adrenal Fatigue.