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Articles by Meagan Layton, PhD

Meagan Layton completed her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology and Behavioral Medicine in the Human Services Psychology Program at the University of Maryland Baltimore County in 2018. She went on to complete a clinical health psychology post-doctoral fellowship in HIV and liver diseases at the VA Maryland Health Care System (VAMHCS). She is currently a Health Psychologist in Primary Care-Mental Health Integration in the VAMHCS . Her clinical and research interests focus on health behavior change using the framework of the Transtheoretical Model and Motivational Interviewing and she is particularly passionate about working with America's Veterans.

Grad School Burnout is Real – Here are the Symptoms

Grad School Burnout is Real – Here are the Symptoms

by | Aug 25, 2021 | Self-Care, Student & Intern Resources

Burnout is believed to be coined by the psychologist Dr. Herbert Freudenberger who defined it as “failing, wearing out, or becoming exhausted through excessive demands on energy, strength, or resources” [1].

At times, graduate school seems synonymous with burnout – it is a multi-year, grueling process of hurdle after hurdle.

There is often a mentality in graduate programs that this “suffering” is a right-of-passage of sorts, an initiation that all therapists before us endured and overcame before entering into the profession.

However, the reality is that these expectations and this laissez faire attitude, when left unchecked, can produce burnout that is of detriment to not only the physical and mental health of graduate students, but also to their productivity and quality of work. Unfortunately, for many in the psychology field, this experience does not end with graduate school.

Yes, You Can Overcome Grad School Burnout – Here’s How

Yes, You Can Overcome Grad School Burnout – Here’s How

by | Sep 12, 2016 | Lifehacks, Tips & Advice, Self-Care, Student & Intern Resources

Previously in this series, we introduced burnout and outlined symptoms of burnout to look out for.

In this article, we will discuss strategies that can help you prevent and treat burnout, so that you can continue to excel in your graduate program and future career as a behavioral health professional (or if you found this article and you’re not in the behavioral health field, these burnout tips can help you regardless of your field).

Oftentimes there are environmental factors (e.g., too few resources, too many responsibilities, too little time) that contribute to the experience of burnout; however, these factors are often outside of our control. Fortunately, there are things you can be doing to cope with environmental stressors and manage your response to frustrations.

Ideally, these strategies should be implemented early on to prevent burnout from occurring. However, even if symptoms of burnout have already reared their ugly head, these strategies can help break the cycle of behavior and thinking patterns that can produce and perpetuate the symptoms of burnout.