Not long ago we talked about what it meant be melted, and we related it to a state of extreme situation, sufficient and capable of marking both the destruction and transcendence of a person. A true break that tests the capacity for tolerance and adaptation with the inevitable crunch of all existence in an impact that erupts suddenly and automatically, like an overload that is difficult to control in being and doing.
Today the intention is to talk about two other entities that, although they have always been known, have recently been redefined with more details. As he Boreout syndrome As the Chronic Boredom They are common in people who, for some reason, run out of novelty, challenge and excitement.
Although this is not a fatal problem, in psychological terms it speaks of an emotional state of dissatisfaction within an existence that is perceived as dull, empty and meaningless. Because with the arrival of boredom The person expresses the impression that the joy and rewarding experiences of life have been stopped.
He Boreout syndrome As the Chronic Boredom They are common in people who, for some reason, run out of novelty, challenge and excitement
While maintaining the aspiration to recover that joy and the ability to experience pleasant sensations, the person bored It is not willing to initiate any activity that could destroy the state. Either because their ability to act is diminished or because they believe that nothing within their reach can change the situation.
It is worth clarifying that get bored, to a certain extent, is good. Not only does it promote creativity, but the brain also has the possibility of looking for other alternatives to get out of an uncomfortable state. On the other hand, it represents a kind of “rest” for the mind to disconnect from everyday life and dedicate more time to other possibilities. In the moments of boredom the brain, far from being inactive, turns on the call “default neural networka system that activates a part of the medial parietal cortex and the medial prefrontal cortex to “daydream” and plan possible scenarios or think of other solutions.
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The problem arises when the boredom It appears severe and prolonged and introspection, instead of being an advantage, becomes a threat. There, people stop reading the appropriate signs, with an increased risk, because the overly bored individual easily reaches the bearable ceiling and begins to lose concentration, to experience stress, simply because this prolonged stage deprives them of the sensation of natural pleasure.
When faced with a new and interesting situation, the brain releases dopamine, the neurotransmitter related to the feeling of well-being and the intensity of rewards. Coincidentally, according to a 2007 study published in the Journal of Sport Behavior, people with naturally lower levels of dopamine require a greater amount of novelty to stimulate the brain and thus obtain rewards. This increases their propensity for risky behaviors, which are generally novel to most people. The problem is that not only can this happen to people who naturally generate less dopamine, but also to those affected by boredom prolonged, where risk even sounds good to the brain in order to obtain pleasure.
He too boredom It affects full concentration, as detailed in a study from York University, in Canada, and published in Perspectives on Psychological Science, and the reason is the stress it causes. He boredom It implies that a person settles for less brain stimulation or less activity than necessary to stay healthy, and in stress there is always more stimulation than necessary. Therefore, in any type of stress, the boredom It impacts the prefrontal cortex, the area involved in working memory, which is what allows the cognition necessary to develop a certain activity, affecting it.
He boredom means that a person settles for less brain stimulation
The lack of projects for the future, not having a satisfactory professional activity, poor and scarce human relationships, the lack of incentives, hobbies, commitments of any kind, a radically skeptical attitude towards life, lack of interest in others and because of what happens around us – along with many more factors of all kinds – favor the appearance of boredom which can become chronic.
Without a doubt, the boredom It is the consequence of a progressive impoverishment in the sphere of personality and of an attitude towards life, which has lost its fundamental ingredients. It is a pathology that affects those who are poorly motivated at work, and become bored day after day, by tasks that require little of their ability and time. Paradoxically, they always appear to be busy, so as not to take on more efforts, and at first glance, it seems like laziness or laziness, however, at work, they suffer from the so-called Boreout syndromewhich can trigger health problems due to anxiety and stress.
There are bosses who complain that their employees perform less and less, that they are always poorly predisposed, that they work by regulating their strength, as if they were doing it by regulation. On the other hand, there are employees who complain that their superiors do not recognize their efforts, that they do not feel motivated, and that the bad climate around them keeps them overwhelmed.
Neurosciences allow us to analyze how these mechanisms work at the brain level, and, to counteract the boredom, the person tends to adopt a behavior in relation to an expectation of reward. This activates neurocircuits related to motivation, even if you are not aware of it. Any situation with a feeling of exclusion activates the same brain areas as physical pain; If the evaluation signals are not expressed explicitly, the brain invents, infers, draws conclusions with little information, with many chances of being wrong.
Recent research detected that the emotional well-being generated by states of acceptance and comfort activates better neurocognitive functioning of the brain and facilitates motivation. When bosses, at the work level, take care of details related to their work teams, they generate greater adherence and more work application. Telling a collaborator something good or valuing them boosts the reward and pleasure circuit and drives towards improvement with belonging. In this way, those praised will tend to repeat that behavior and that will surely produce better results.
It is another aspect, stimulating spaces for bonds and integration at work, with good moments of communication, releases oxytocin, a neurohormone that strengthens the feeling of trust and security. Only with that do people go from being individuals to being part of true teams with significance.
Problems in the work environment often perpetuate a growing discomfort by emphasizing ideas that do not allow adequate concentration. Modifying it requires greater energy consumption from the brain and a strong dose of motivation to get out of the routine without resistance to change.
Without a doubt, the various circumstances that generate situations of discomfort with oneself entail a degree of severe frustration due to having to repeat the same tasks every day with the same results. Maintaining the conditions plus the lack of motivation, together with the constant need to “hide” inactivity towards others for fear of reprisals, generates chronic stress with negative consequences on health, alterations in sleep and cognitive function, weight variations, respiratory problems, muscle pain, headaches,… which may be the origin of other diseases or a more exhaustive interdisciplinary requirement.
The bad thing is that in today’s society parents provide their children with constant activity, instant gratification
The diagnosis of both Chronic Boredom or of Boreout syndrome imposes differential diagnosis with Burn Out either burnout syndrome, where similar symptoms appear, but which, however, is due to opposite causes. In the case of Burn Out the patient suffers from exhaustion that prevents him from continuing with daily demands and an extreme situation of distress, without time to get bored or show low self-esteem; There is no feeling of underutilization of potential. Quite the opposite, since when overcome by the situation and maintained over time, increasing fatigue and a firm impossibility of performance appear.
The need to establish a differential diagnosis between these conditions does not mean that two concomitant forms cannot occur in the same person; if he chronic boredom or the Boreout syndromeThey do not resolve quickly, leading to major depression and more serious symptoms.
Being bored stimulates creativity. And always being busy destroys it. This is the conclusion of a study recently carried out by Teresa Belton and Esther Priyadharshini, from the University of East Anglia (United Kingdom). According to the researchers, especially during the first years of life, it is essential to remain “idle” for a while. This allows us to develop imagination and creativity, and learn to “stand on our own two feet.” The bad thing is that in today’s society parents provide their children with constant activity, instant gratification and sophisticated entertainment, enemies of the creative potential and freedom of thought of the little ones. For this reason, in The Cambridge Journal of Education, Belton claims that the boredom be recognized as a legitimate human emotion with a central role in learning and creativity.
Therefore, it is necessary that at some moments in life there be authentic boredom, overcome with games, fun or change of activity. The fact that it is repetitive and intense can lead to a serious pathological state, since it is clear that it can lead to more harm, since recent studies have linked the inclination to boredom with a tendency to smoke, drink too much and take drugs. That, without talking about other more mundane, but equally unhealthy behavior, such as eating to overcome it.
Feel bored Mark a good time to reevaluate life and goals… as well as rethink what exactly you mean when you say: I’m bored.
Author: DR. NSE. LUIS M. LABATH – Former Medical Director of the José M. Cullen Hospital. Period: 2002-2007.
Article previously published in and transferred for publication in .