It is challenging to open a medical journal in any field without encountering an article about burnout. These articles contain statistics, trends, and a multitude of causes. Some even propose practical solutions—flexible scheduling, peer support, delegating clerical tasks, and a heightened emphasis on personal well-being activities represent steps in a positive direction.

I have stated before that “the lack of burnout does not equate to wellness,” just as the absence of illness does not denote health. We are entitled to more than simply the capability to function; we are entitled to thrive. This is where a domain like positive psychology, often referred to as the science of happiness, can provide evidence-based insights.

What has become evident over recent years is that numerous individuals are attributing excessive significance to new buzzwords such as burnout or moral injury for their discontent. Many of us are struggling, whether personally or professionally. It’s not as though we are joyful, serene, and fulfilled at home and then suddenly begin to experience difficulties only when we arrive at work.

Our occupations, colleagues, or even the harsh healthcare system are not responsible for our dissatisfaction. Many of us may experience burnout, but it has little connection to our career choices. Few of us feel fulfilled. Not many of us are satisfied. Most of us cannot escape stress and anxiety. The majority of us appear restless and desire to feel better continuously. So we hold our jobs, financial status, those around us, and even the world accountable, labeling it burnout. While burnout is a significant issue for some, it is now being conveniently used by many as a way to divert responsibility from ourselves. We are the issue. However, the optimistic aspect is that we are also the resolution. It is our lack of comprehension that leads to a constant state of discontent, pushing us to desperately pursue happiness in various forms. Only understanding can liberate us.

What is it that we have failed to grasp? What are the questions buried within us that we lack the courage to ask?

Why are we not fulfilled? Why do we find ourselves restless and anxious most of the time? Why do we yearn for distractions through phones, television, and alcohol?

What we fail to comprehend is that the dissatisfaction and restlessness many of us experience is the inherent condition of our minds. Our minds have evolved to safeguard us and are perpetually seeking opportunities while avoiding threats. Observe how you allocate your time and contemplate your thoughts—they mostly seek pleasurable experiences while evading painful ones. We are all firefighters extinguishing fires day after day, differing only in the scale of the blaze.

Our minds can never achieve satisfaction because that would pose a threat to their survival. This is the reason we take everything in our lives for granted. This necessitates the practice of gratitude journaling—because our minds can lead us to forget just how well-off we really are. This phenomenon, termed hedonic adaptation, ensures we overlook consistent stimuli in our lives, allowing us to easily detect new stimuli (potential threats) from those that gradually fade away. The issue is that much of what recedes into the background of our lives encompasses the very elements that make life meaningful—our close relationships, health, and purposeful work. This explains the existence of the “I’ll be happy when” syndrome. Reflect on your own lives. Each life phase was succeeded by a new objective to attain. This also clarifies impact bias or the tendency to overestimate how good or bad a future event will ultimately make us feel. Generally, experiences are not usually as positive or negative as we anticipate, but our minds tend to amplify this future “impact.” Both hedonic adaptation and impact bias act as evolutionary mechanisms that motivate us to remain vigilant, active, and perpetually unfulfilled.

But here lies the core issue—We are more than merely the evolutionary wiring of our minds.

Our minds will fundamentally always prioritize self-preservation. Our minds are programmed to remain insatiable because doing otherwise would jeopardize their survival. Imagine not being perpetually vigilant for food or predators in the wild? What if we became satisfied with our circumstances and halted our search? We would not endure for long. Satisfaction is akin to kryptonite for the mind.

Thus, the intrinsic nature of our mind is characterized by a state of visceral discontent—restlessness and a sense of something always missing despite our accomplishments.

Since we perceive ourselves as nothing more than this evolutionary wiring, we too exist in this state of visceral discontent.

Once discontented, we seek to feel better because most of the time, we don’t feel as we wish to feel.

Here is another misstep:

We pursue satisfaction through our minds which, by their very nature, can never achieve fulfillment.

Consequently, life transforms into an endless pursuit. We believe that this next goal or achievement will be the one that