Stress & burnout therapy
Stress and Burnout Therapy in Grand Blanc, Michigan
For chronic work stress, emotional exhaustion and caregiver strain — in person in Grand Blanc or by secure video across Michigan and 14 other states.
When rest stops working
Burnout is not the same as being tired. Tiredness responds to a weekend. Burnout doesn’t — you sleep, you take the time off, and you come back feeling exactly as flat as before. That’s usually the point at which people start wondering what’s wrong with them.
Nothing is wrong with you. Burnout has a recognisable shape: exhaustion that rest doesn’t touch, a growing distance from work you used to care about, and the sense that nothing you do makes a dent. The last two are what separate it from ordinary fatigue, and they’re the ones people rarely mention out loud.
I’m Kevin B. Stachowiak, MSW, LMSW. A lot of the people I see here are competent, conscientious and quietly running on empty — often the person everyone else relies on.
How we work on it
We start by separating what’s actually driving it. Burnout that comes from workload is a different problem from burnout that comes from moral strain, or from a job that conflicts with what matters to you, or from carrying a family member’s needs alongside your own. The fixes are different, so the distinction matters.
From there the work is practical: rebuilding boundaries that have quietly eroded, noticing the thinking that makes rest feel unearned, and finding what recovery actually requires for you rather than what it’s supposed to require. I draw on cognitive behavioral therapy, acceptance and commitment therapy and mindfulness-based approaches, matched to what you’re carrying.
Sessions run 45 to 60 minutes, in person or by secure video. Evening appointments are available, which matters when the problem is the job you can’t take time off from. See fees & insurance →
What people bring in
Burnout and depression overlap — and it matters which one it is
They share symptoms, and plenty of people have both. But burnout is tied to a context; depression usually isn’t. If your flatness lifts on holiday and returns on the first morning back, that points one way. If it follows you everywhere regardless of what you’re doing, that points another.
Sorting that out early changes what we do. See depression therapy →
Good to know
Stress and burnout: common questions
Is burnout a diagnosis?
Not in the way depression or an anxiety disorder is. The World Health Organization classifies it as an occupational phenomenon rather than a medical condition. That has a practical consequence: sessions are billed against the clinical picture we're actually treating, which is often anxiety, depression or an adjustment difficulty. I'll be straightforward with you about what's being billed.
Do I have to leave my job to get better?
No, and most people don't. Plenty of what drives burnout is changeable inside the same job — how much you absorb, what you say yes to, how recovery is built into your week. If it turns out the job itself is the problem, that's worth knowing clearly rather than suspecting for another two years.
What if I'm burned out from caregiving, not work?
Caregiver strain is one of the most common reasons people come in, and it's harder in one specific way: you usually can't resign. The work looks different — it leans more on sustainability, guilt, and getting support in place — but it's very much in scope.
Can we meet outside working hours?
Yes. Appointments run to 7:00 PM Monday through Thursday, and Saturday mornings. Secure video is available too, which some people find easier than adding a commute to an already full day.
Rest hasn’t fixed it. That’s worth looking at.
A free 15-minute consultation is a low-pressure way to ask questions and see whether this feels like the right fit.
Also available
Other concerns I work with
If you’re in crisis: this website isn’t for emergencies. If you or someone you love is in danger or thinking about suicide, call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline) or call 911. You deserve immediate support.