Appointments are available either in person at our Toronto location or remotely through PHIPA-compliant video therapy.

Contact Us
LaksmanDoell Logo - Psychologists in Toronto
Contact us
LaksmanDoell Logo - Psychologists in Toronto
Contact Us

Burnout Treatment in Toronto
Doctoral-Level Psychological Care for Executive, Professional & Athlete Burnout

Therapy for burnout at Laksman Doell Psychology is delivered by doctoral-level psychologists who work with executives, lawyers, consultants, physicians, founders, athletes, and the people who manage families and households with that same intensity and invisibility. In person at our office in the Annex neighbourhood of Toronto, and virtually across Ontario.

What Burnout Looks Like

“Professional time has ballooned and can easily bleed into our personal time and spaces. Burning out is a common occupational phenomenon that warrants management and solutions.”
Dr. Shira Yufe, Laksman Doell Psychology

Burnout is not a formal mental health diagnosis, but it is a recognized occupational phenomenon named by the World Health Organization. It is not a character flaw. It is not a willpower problem. It is what happens when your nervous system has been on for too long, in conditions that you don’t have control over and that you can’t easily change, while you keep producing, keep moving, and are working hard to keep the light on.

Burnout happens in workplace situations where the demands are high and the breaks are low. It happens for those of us who care deeply about the things that we do and the people that need us, but who don’t also take the time to care for ourselves. It also happens disproportionately for those of us who are used to pushing ourselves hard, no matter what, in every area of life, and who rarely take our foot off of the accelerator.

The signs of burnout are consistent and identifiable. Perhaps the easiest to identify is the exhaustion. This includes both physical exhaustion that doesn’t lift with rest, and emotional exhaustion that shows up as either a difficulty controlling emotions (e.g., irritability that is leaking out sideways, or unexpected tearfulness in response to things that would not have previously pulled for an emotional response) or as a lack of emotional responsivity to situations that would previously had much more of an impact. It also shows up as growing cynicism and a sense of detachment from work that used to matter, or responsibilities that we used to care deeply about, and as a reduced sense of effectiveness and accomplishment. Other notable consequences of burnout include difficulty concentrating, decreased productivity or lower output despite ongoing efforts, and disrupted sleep and fatigue.

The particular difficulty with burnout in high performers is that you are trained to perform through discomfort. You have done it for years. As a result, burnout is often misidentified as a discipline problem. That is not what it is.

CONTACT US
If you are reading this

You may not be sure what you need, but something brought you here…

  • You are the person who everyone depends upon. You hold the meeting together, hold the team together, and hold the family together through the quarters that never seem to end and the workload that just keeps building. You have been quietly running on empty for longer than you have let yourself admit.
  • You used to care more about your work. But now you're losing the thread, and recently the cynicism has crept in. The irritability shows up at home with the people who least deserve it. A long weekend or a vacation isn't even touching your exhaustion anymore.
  • You are still performing, still getting everything done, still hitting the numbers. From the outside, no one would know. But inside, the bandwidth is gone and you feel like you're treading water. Decisions take longer to make. Your sleep is disrupted. You don't even recognize how long it's been since you felt like yourself.
  • By the time most people seek help, the pattern has been running for months. Often longer.
This is what has brought you here. And you are in the right place.
Burnout treatment in Toronto

The presentations of burnout that we treat:

At Laksman Doell Psychology, we provide psychological treatment to individuals who are experiencing burnout as a natural consequence of unrelenting demands at work, at home, in sports, or in any other area of their lives. We also focus on treating burnout that is driven primarily by unrelenting demands that come from within. In high performers, executive burnout rarely comes from overwork alone. It comes from the patterns that lie underneath the overwork: perfectionism that won’t let good enough be good enough, an identity that is tied so tightly to performance that rest feels like risk, a difficulty delegating to others, and a relationship with your own limits that hasn’t been examined in a very long time.

Our doctoral-level psychologists have extensive experience working with high performers across a number of different fields: executives, founders, lawyers, consultants, physicians, academics and athletes. We treat caregiver burnout for individuals who are supporting a loved one through illness and for individuals who are so focused on taking care of everyone else that they are neglecting to look after themselves. Treatment for burnout can target a number of different areas including:

Physical and Emotional Exhaustion

The physical and emotional exhaustion that show up with burnout are real, and need to be addressed comprehensively. They are a natural consequence of running too hard, for too long, with no reprieve. Addressing this exhaustion involves identifying and understanding the things that we need to do in order to restore our energy reserves, as well as the underlying patterns that are contributing to our pushing ourselves so hard in the first place, and the barriers that prevent us from slowing down.

Emotion Regulation

Burnout often occurs after long periods of ignoring emotional signals of frustration, anxiety and fatigue. It can also show up as emotional dysregulation (emotional reactions that feel overwhelming, out of proportion to a given situation, or difficult to control) or overregulation (a lack of emotional reaction to situations that would normally have led to one). Addressing emotion regulation involves learning to pay attention to our emotions, practicing with skills that allow us to modify and to flexibly respond to our emotions, and understanding and tending to the unmet needs that drive them.

Cynicism and Detachment

The cynicism and sense of detachment that frequently accompany burnout often feel like an additional unfair punishment on their own. Not only is it hard to keep going, but we start to lose sight of why we started going in the first place and it becomes hard to see how anything will ever change. Treatment for cynicism and detachment involves understanding why these occur and what it is that we need, reconnecting with our values, rediscovering meaning, and reframing the obstacles that we encounter that cannot be changed.

Stress Management

Stress management is more than just token acts of self-care. It is about paying attention to the impact of both the external stressors that we encounter in our lives, and the internal stressors (the maladaptive thinking patterns and difficult emotional reactions) that we experience. It is about learning to respond to these stressors constructively and about learning how to move through the stress cycle by releasing stress, connecting with others, and taking genuine care of ourselves and our needs.

Self-Critical Evaluations

Burnout is often associated with the strong presence of an internal critic that tells us that we are simply not good enough. Every task is seen as an opportunity for failure, and the fear of falling short keeps our system running past its threshold. Successes aren’t recognized, rest isn’t allowed, and achievements don’t count. Addressing this internal critic involves understanding where it came from, what keeps feeding it, and what we need in order to let it go.
CONTACT US
Our Approach

Treatment that starts with understanding you.

Burnout sometimes shows up unexpectedly for individuals who are used to being able to reliably push themselves beyond normal human limits. It can also sometimes show up long after we would have expected it to, or it can sneak up on us after a period of intense stress, at the very time that we would have expected that we might be feeling better. However, and whenever it shows up, treatment starts with recognition. Not recognition of burnout as a moment of defeat, but as recognition of the need for something more intelligent and more adaptive than just pushing through.
At Laksman Doell Psychology, our doctoral-level psychologists utilize evidence-based treatments to target both the manifestations of burnout and the causal factors that contribute to burnout in the first place. When you come to us for therapy, you can expect to start by working collaboratively with your psychologist to develop a comprehensive understanding of who you are, how you came to see the world, the way that you do, what it is that drives you, and the things that are most important to you. It is through this formulation that we can develop a better understanding of your experience of the stressors in your life, the ways that you respond to them (or don’t respond to them), and the internal drivers that keep you going past the point of exhaustion without letting you rest.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is the foundation for much of this work. We map both the thinking patterns and the behaviours that produce and maintain burnout: the perfectionism, the inability to delegate, the identity that is built entirely around output, and the self-critical voice that has decided that slowing down is failure. From there, we draw on a number of different evidence-based strategies for restructuring problematic thinking patterns and engaging in more adaptive behaviours, in order to help individuals to chart a new course.

Where it is indicated, our psychologists will also speak with you about integrating other evidence-based treatment modalities in order to address different aspects of burnout. We bring in Compassion Focused-Therapy (CFT) when the inner critic has quietly taken over the role of manager, coach, and motivator all at once. That voice is loud in high performers, and it can be exhausting too. We bring in Motivational Interviewing (MI) when there is ambivalence about change, which there almost always is. You want relief. And you are also not sure you can afford to want it. In addition, we often find that Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) can serve to strengthen and sustain change. When high performers burn out, the suffering is often compounded by the fight against it. ACT helps you to stop spending energy on the war with your own experience and to start moving towards what actually matters to you. We also draw on performance-informed approaches that have been built over years of clinical work inside of high-stakes environments. We do not ask you to lower the bar. Rather, we work with you on performing from a more grounded place, in a way that is actually sustainable.

Our Difference

Specialist training.
Private practice access.

Laksman Doell Psychology is a preferred psychology provider for the National Hockey League Players’ Association (NHLPA), and a provider for the NHL Alumni Association. Dr. Zoë Laksman, C.Psych., one of our Co-Founders and Clinical Directors, served as a Staff Psychologist at Cleveland Clinic Canada in their executive health, stress and anxiety, women’s health, and cardiac prevention programs, and has delivered on-site psychological services, professional talks, and emotional health programming for Boston Consulting Group (BCG)’s Toronto office and across BCG’s Canadian offices. Our team of doctoral-level psychologists have worked with high-performing athletes and individuals and executives who work in high-demand fields such as consulting, finance, law, medicine and academia and have given talks and workshops that address the unique needs of individuals working within these fields.

We understand high-stakes environments because we have worked inside them for years. We do not romanticize the pressure. We understand it.

Every clinician on our team is a doctoral-level psychologist who is registered with, or working toward registration with, the College of Psychologists and Behaviour Analysts of Ontario (CPBAO). Sessions are PHIPA-compliant. Confidentiality and discretion are absolute.

If you are reading this on behalf of an organization, law firm, or professional association, we also offer workplace mental health programming, leadership talks, clinical partnerships, and on-site psychological services. Reach out to our team directly.

Get to know us
Get Started

Ready to take the next step?

Life can be complicated, finding support shouldn’t be. At Laksman Doell, we take that seriously.
  • No referral required
  • Response within one business day
  • In-person Toronto · Virtual Ontario-wide
  • PHIPA-compliant · Confidential

Send us a message

Service Form

"*" indicates required fields

Your information is private and confidential.

Frequently Asked Questions

Am I burned out or just tired?
Burnout is exhaustion that does not resolve with rest. If a full night’s sleep, a weekend, or even a vacation leaves you feeling the same, then that is a signal. Burnout also brings emotional detachment and a growing sense that your work no longer means anything. Tired recovers. Burnout does not resolve without something changing.
Burnout is typically context-specific and tied to chronic overextension. Depression tends to be more pervasive, affecting all areas of life and often involving hopelessness or loss of pleasure across the board. They can look similar and sometimes occur together. A proper diagnostic assessment from a licenced psychologist can clarify which you are dealing with and what will actually help.
Vacation removes the source of stress temporarily. It does not change the patterns, beliefs, or internal drivers that led to burnout. If you return from time off dreading Monday and then feel completely burned out again within 48 hours, the problem is structural, not situational. Rest is necessary but it is not sufficient.
Stress management may be a necessary part of treatment, but it is not sufficient. Burnout treatment addresses the patterns underneath the chronic stress: the perfectionism, the identity that is built around output, the inability to delegate, and the self-critical voice that made slowing down feel like failure. We work at the level of the causal factors, not just addressing the symptoms on the surface.
Yes. Burnout is particularly effective at hiding behind competence. The fact that you are still performing does not mean that the pattern isn’t running. It usually means that you’ve been adept at managing it for a long time. The question isn’t whether you’re functioning. A better question is what it’s costing you.
Yes. Laksman Doell Psychology is a preferred provider for the NHLPA. We understand the particular pressures of elite sport, including performance demands, transitions, and the identity challenges that come with injury or career change.
No. All sessions are completely confidential and PHIPA-compliant. Discretion is absolute.
Services are not covered by OHIP. Coverage may be available through extended health benefits, as many plans cover the services of a registered psychologist. We recommend confirming with your provider before commencing treatment.
Yes. All services are available virtually via PHIPA-compliant video for any Ontario resident.

Life is complicated. We give you clarity.

The first step is a brief consultation to help understand what you are looking for. No referral required. Email us at [email protected] or complete our contact form online.
contact us