How can developers maintain their mental health to cope with the occupational "burnout crisis"?

According to a recent study, two out of five tech workers are at high risk of burnout, and the industry is facing a "burnout crisis." Burnout occurs when we force ourselves to work while ignoring the potential accumulation of stress.

With May being Mental Health Awareness Month, Stack Overflow has released a survey of software developers' healthy habits to see what developers are doing to ease their minds.

The report surveyed more than 800 developers about how happy they are at work and what they are doing to maintain or improve their mental health.

Previously, Stack Overflow also shared a data that about 70% of developers are in a happy working state, and more than 90% of developers said that happy work is very important to them. Among them, India, the United States, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom are the five happiest countries for developers.

Let's take a look at the new findings of this survey report.

Happy developers have employers who encourage a focus on mental health

The survey found that about 62% of respondents' employers encourage employees to be physically and mentally healthy at work. But more than 60 percent of developers said they never had a mental health day.

Taking a break doesn't mean leaving the screen

The survey found that one of the best ways to reduce stress is physical activity. More than 50% of developers said that when they needed a break, they chose to go for a walk or do some physical exercise, the most common answer among respondents. This means that some developers also choose screen-related activities during their breaks, such as listening to music (46%), visiting Stack Overflow (41%), browsing social media (37%) and watching videos (36%).

Improving health is changing habits

It's good for employers to encourage employees to focus on health, but for developers to actually achieve health requires changing habits. A whopping 88% of respondents are interested in improving their physical health and 83% are interested in improving their mental health.

Ways developers improve their health include drinking more water (57%), eating healthy (56%), prioritizing exercise (47%), connecting with friends and family (43%), and working fewer hours (25%). Fewer than 35% of people currently consider exercise a part of their daily routine.

Preventing "burnout" in the fast-paced tech industry can be a bit of a challenge, but encouraging employees to take breaks and prioritise health is the first step in ensuring developers are happy at work.

How do you feel about the "burnout" crisis? What other adjustment methods are there?

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