Contrast the Zen sitters’ recovery from stress reactivity with burnout, the depleted, hopeless state that comes from years of constant, unremitting pressures, like from jobs that demand too much. Burnout has become rampant among health care professions such as nurses and doctors, as well as those who care at home for loved ones with problems like Alzheimer’s. And, of course, anyone can feel burned-out who faces the rants of rude customers or continual implacable deadlines, as with the hectic pace of a business start-up.
