OCCUPATIONAL STRESS AND BURNOUT THERAPY
By David Hennessy, Clinical Psychologist
Psychological therapy for people experiencing sustained work-related stress, professional exhaustion or occupational burnout.
This service is specifically for difficulties arising primarily from paid employment or professional responsibilities. Appointments are available in person in Varsity Lakes on the Gold Coast and by secure telehealth across Australia.
Occupational stress can develop when the demands of paid work remain high, conflict with available resources, or leave too little opportunity for psychological and physical recovery.
Burnout is related to chronic stress and is most commonly discussed in an occupational context, particularly in relation to prolonged workplace stress. The World Health Organization describes occupational burnout as an occupational phenomenon associated with chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed.
This service focuses on paid employment and professional roles, including workload, role ambiguity, organisational change, interpersonal conflict, responsibility, moral distress, job insecurity and difficulty disengaging from work.
If stress spans several areas of life without one dominant work-related source, the broader Therapy for Chronic Stress and Burnout pathway may be more relevant. For difficulties arising mainly from unpaid caring, see Psychological Support for Carer Stress and Burnout.
Work-related stress and occupational burnout can affect both employment and life outside work. People may notice:
These experiences are not unique to burnout. Assessment can consider workplace factors together with anxiety, depression, insomnia, trauma, physical health concerns or other difficulties that may also require attention.
Therapy can provide a structured place to understand the interaction between workplace demands, personal patterns, health, relationships and opportunities for recovery.
Depending on the person’s circumstances, therapy may help to:
Therapy does not assume that individual coping strategies can correct unsafe, unreasonable or structurally difficult workplace conditions. Where relevant, organisational, medical, industrial, legal or other professional support may also be important.
Treatment is tailored to the employment context, current functioning, goals and the degree to which workplace conditions can realistically be changed.
Therapy may map workload, control, support, role clarity, interpersonal pressures, values conflicts, job security and opportunities for recovery. This can help identify where psychological, practical, organisational or other action may be useful.
Work can remain mentally present long after working hours end. Therapy may support clearer boundaries, transition routines, sleep-supportive habits and ways of reducing repeated checking, rumination or work-related preoccupation.
High standards and professional responsibility can be valuable, but rigid perfectionism, fear of errors or over-responsibility may increase strain. Moral distress can also arise when a person feels unable to act consistently with professional values because of workplace constraints.
Depending on the situation, therapy can support assertive communication, prioritisation, problem-solving, preparation for workplace discussions and decisions about seeking appropriate professional or workplace advice.
Where relevant, therapy can support graded re-engagement after leave and planning for more sustainable participation. Formal workplace recommendations, fitness-for-work opinions or reports are separate matters and depend on the purpose and scope of assessment.
Treatment draws on evidence-based psychological approaches while remaining sensitive to organisational realities, employment conditions and power differences. Approaches are selected according to the person’s needs, goals, preferences and workplace context.
CBT can help address unhelpful cycles involving threat appraisal, worry, avoidance, perfectionism and reduced restorative activity.
ACT may help clarify professional and personal values, build psychological flexibility and support workable action under pressure.
Mindfulness-based strategies may support attention, awareness of stress responses and deliberate transitions between work and non-work time.
Explore the broader therapy approaches used at Hennessy Clinical Psychology.
Psychological therapy should not frame burnout as an individual failure. Workload, staffing, autonomy, fairness, support, values and organisational culture can materially affect wellbeing.
Where appropriate, a GP, psychiatrist, workplace rehabilitation provider or another professional may also be involved.
References and resources
[1] World Health Organization. (2019). Burn-out an “occupational phenomenon”: International Classification of Diseases. World Health Organization.
[2] Pees, S. O., van Oostrom, S., Lettinga, H., Schaafsma, F., & Proper, K. (2024). Effects of interventions implemented by occupational health professionals to prevent work-related stress complaints: A systematic review. Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 81(6), 321–328. https://doi.org/10.1136/oemed-2024-109454
[3] Bes, I., Shoman, Y., Al-Gobari, M., Rousson, V., & Guseva Canu, I. (2023). Organizational interventions and occupational burnout: A meta-analysis with focus on exhaustion. International Archives of Occupational and Environmental Health, 96, 1211–1223. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00420-023-02009-z
Visit the cornerstone hub for broader information and the complete chronic stress and burnout cluster.
Use the broader service pathway when persistent stress and exhaustion span several areas of life rather than arising mainly from work.
Use the carer-specific pathway when sustained demands primarily involve supporting a partner, child, parent, relative or another person.
Explore assessment and treatment options where insomnia or disrupted sleep is a central concern.
Explore psychological support and information for persistent worry, anxiety, fear and related difficulties that may occur alongside chronic stress or burnout.
Explore psychological support and information for depression, bipolar disorder and other mood difficulties that may occur alongside prolonged stress or burnout.
Common questions about psychological therapy for occupational stress and burnout.
No. The World Health Organization includes burnout in ICD-11 as an occupational phenomenon rather than a medical condition. Its definition concerns chronic workplace stress that has not been successfully managed. A person experiencing burnout may also have anxiety, depression, insomnia, trauma-related difficulties or physical health concerns that warrant separate assessment.
Yes, but therapy cannot make an unsafe or unreasonable workplace acceptable. It can help clarify the problem, reduce maintaining patterns, support decisions and strengthen communication, boundaries and recovery while practical or organisational remedies are considered.
No. Therapy does not begin with a predetermined employment decision. It can support a careful assessment of health, values, finances, workplace options and the likely consequences of staying, changing roles, taking leave or leaving.
This page is specifically about employment and professional roles. The general Chronic Stress and Burnout Therapy page is more appropriate when overload spans multiple life areas or is not principally occupational.
Yes. Where clinically appropriate, therapy may support recovery, graded re-engagement, coping with work-related triggers and planning sustainable routines. Formal fitness-for-work opinions require a clearly defined assessment process and may not form part of ordinary therapy.
Yes. Appointments are available in person at Varsity Lakes on the Gold Coast and by secure telehealth across Australia where telehealth is clinically appropriate.
Hennessy Clinical Psychology provides psychological therapy for adolescents and adults from Varsity Lakes on the Gold Coast, with telehealth appointments available across Australia.
If work-related stress, professional exhaustion or occupational burnout is affecting wellbeing or functioning, you are welcome to make an enquiry or book an appointment.