What should you know about digital burnout?

Constant notifications, video meetings, rapid task switching and pressure to stay available can keep the brain alert beyond working hours. You may notice tiredness, headaches, irritability, reduced motivation, difficulty concentrating or trouble settling at night. Digital burnout is a pattern of overload rather than a diagnosis established by screen time alone. It can overlap with burnout or insomnia, so the wider situation matters.

Set a clear end to work, silence non-urgent alerts and keep the phone away during meals or before bed. Use short screen breaks to look into the distance, move your body and drink water. Group messages into planned check-ins instead of reacting continuously. Adjust brightness, text size and posture, and protect time for offline activities. Track when symptoms appear and whether sleep, workload or particular apps make them worse.

Arrange a medical review if exhaustion, sleep difficulty, anxiety or low mood persists after meaningful changes, interferes with work or daily tasks, or keeps returning. Seek urgent help for thoughts of self-harm, severe confusion, chest pain or difficulty breathing. A clinician can consider other causes and help you plan support.

Could another health problem be contributing to my fatigue or sleep changes? How should I adjust work demands while I recover? Would support for anxiety, insomnia or burnout be useful?