Depression vs. burnout: A physician goes through both

"I have been depressed.

I have been burned out.

I have been both.

I have been neither.

How do you know if you are depressed vs. burned out when your chief complaint is, “I feel like crap?” It’s time to call a consult. I don’t mean curbsiding your colleagues to fill your medications off the record without evaluation. I mean, ask for real help, from someone who can objectively help you define your diagnosis and the best path forward. If you “feel like crap” and think you may be depressed or burned out, please reach out to a trusted physician, therapist, or coach. You are not alone, and there is hope and help waiting for you."

Kara Pepper is an internal medicine physician and can be reached at her self-titled site, Physician Life Coach: Kara Pepper, MD.

She shares her story and discusses her KevinMD article, "Call a consult: depression vs. burnout." (https://www.kevinmd.com/blog/2020/09/call-a-consult-depression-vs-burnout.html)