Profmed Stress Index - 44% of South African women report feeling overwhelmed, experts warn of burnout risks

That massive mental (and physical) load of being a woman means we’re most likely to be overwhelmed by the sheer weight of all our roles.

Even if we try to keep stress at bay with a Pilates class and a matcha after, the 2025 Profmed Stress Index found that more than 44.05% of respondents feel overwhelmed.

Right now, South African women are, for the most part, channelling Real Housewives of New York OG Dorinda Medley, saying: “I’ll tell you how I’m doing: not well, b*tch!”

Profmed clinical executive Justine Lacy spoke to Bizcommunity about why women are more susceptible to stress, how workplaces can help, and how to manage stress before it becomes chronic.

Profmed clinical executive Justine Lacy. Image supplied.

What are the main drivers of stress for women in the workplace?

Women commonly experience workplace stress due to the competing demands of their professional and personal lives.

The three most significant drivers are:

• Work-life balance challenges: Many women juggle professional responsibilities alongside family, caregiving, and household commitments. The pressure to meet competing expectations at work and home can make it difficult to disconnect, recover, and maintain healthy boundaries.
• Heavy workloads and time pressures: High-performance expectations, demanding workloads, long working hours, and the expectation to be constantly available contribute significantly to stress. Over time, these pressures can lead to exhaustion, burnout, and reduced wellbeing.
• Financial and career-related pressures: Concerns about financial security, job stability, career progression, and the rising cost of living place additional strain on many women. These pressures are often compounded by responsibilities outside the workplace and the desire to meet personal and professional goals.

These stressors are further influenced by caregiving responsibilities, workplace culture, and gender-related barriers.

Rather than occurring in isolation, they often overlap and reinforce one another, creating a complex and cumulative source of stress.

What makes women particularly susceptible to stress in the workplace?

Women are particularly vulnerable to workplace stress because they often navigate multiple responsibilities simultaneously.

Alongside the demands of building and sustaining a career, many women continue to carry a significant share of caregiving and household responsibilities.

When combined with workplace pressures such as heavy workloads, career expectations, gender bias and financial demands, these competing responsibilities can create a cumulative burden that places women at greater risk of chronic stress and burnout.

What are the signs that burnout is imminent?

Burnout rarely happens overnight. It is usually preceded by a range of warning signs that indicate stress is becoming chronic and unmanageable.

Common indicators include persistent fatigue, poor sleep, difficulty concentrating, reduced motivation, increased irritability, emotional exhaustion, and feeling overwhelmed by everyday tasks.

Individuals may also notice a decline in work performance, withdrawal from colleagues or loved ones, and a growing sense of cynicism or detachment from their work.

Recognising these signs early is critical, as timely intervention can help prevent stress from progressing to full burnout.

How can South African workplaces support women and combat burnout?

South African workplaces can play a critical role in reducing burnout among women by creating supportive, flexible and inclusive work environments.

This starts with recognising that many women are balancing demanding careers alongside caregiving and family responsibilities, which can increase their vulnerability to chronic stress.

Practical measures include promoting healthy work-life balance, offering flexible work arrangements where possible, ensuring manageable workloads, and fostering a culture where employees feel comfortable seeking support.

Employers should also provide access to mental health resources, encourage open conversations about wellbeing, and train managers to recognise the early signs of stress and burnout.

Creating equitable workplaces where women feel valued, supported and able to progress professionally is essential for long-term wellbeing and organisational success.

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The Profmed Stress Index found that 44.05% of respondents feel overwhelmed despite using coping mechanisms such as physical exercise, mindfulness and therapy. What can individuals do before stress becomes chronic?

While exercise, mindfulness and therapy are valuable coping tools, they are often most effective when combined with early action to address the underlying causes of stress.

The key is to recognise stress before it becomes chronic and begins to affect physical health, emotional wellbeing, and daily functioning.

Individuals can take proactive steps by building self-awareness and watching for warning signs such as persistent fatigue, poor sleep, irritability, difficulty concentrating, and feeling overwhelmed.

Setting clear boundaries between work and personal life, managing workload expectations, prioritising recovery time, maintaining healthy routines, and seeking support early rather than waiting for a crisis are all important.

Importantly, stress should not be viewed as something to simply endure.

Early intervention and addressing the root causes of stress can help prevent it from progressing to burnout and other long-term health consequences.

What makes you feel stressed, and how do you avert it?

What tends to make me feel stressed is when multiple priorities compete for my attention at the same time, particularly when expectations are high, deadlines are tight, and my list of responsibilities keeps growing.

Like many professionals, I also struggle to balance work commitments with personal and family responsibilities, which can make it difficult to switch off and recharge.

Over the years, I have learnt that the most effective way to manage stress is to address it early.

I place significant importance on self-awareness as a critical tool for early detection and intervention.

By remaining aware of my emotional, mental, and physical wellbeing, I am better able to recognise the early warning signs of stress before they escalate into burnout or other health complications.

Regular exercise is one of my most effective outlets, but I also make a conscious effort to maintain boundaries, prioritise adequate rest, spend time with family and friends, and focus on what is within my control.

Staying organised, breaking challenges into manageable steps, and creating time for recovery help me maintain perspective, act early, and prevent stress from becoming overwhelming.