I have indeed experienced dispatch burnout, but not because it was intense or stressful. Quite frankly, it became boring. When I first started off, I was as enthusiastic as anybody. But after a while (for me it was about 2 years), I had become competent and confident in my abilities. Not that I was jaded, smug, or overconfident by any means, but just that I had seen enough scenarios and dealt with enough irregularities that it had become routine. I mean, really, dispatch is not rocket science. It`s really nothing more than an intelligently applying rules and procedures, guided by experience. The newbie dispatcher has no experience, so perhaps it`s a little more stressful. But as experience is acquired, the confidence level rises, and the stress factor drops. I`m not even sure that stress is the right word. It`s more like uncertainty. There is always the uncertainty that a plan will not work out as intended. That uncertainty factor tends to rise as you get closer to the destination (i.e. as the fuel level dips closer to reserve), but it`s not like the PIC is going to just fly around until the gas is gone.
The other part of it is has to do with financial and quality of life aspects. Dispatch is a neat profession, but it takes it`s toll in terms of quality of life. You work odd hours. You work unhealthy hours. You work weekends. You work holidays. While everyone else in your life is enjoying Christmas with their families, you are sitting at your desk shepherding a dozen empty airplanes all over the country.
If you are working for major airline, the financial benfits make up for the opportunities costs (maybe). But if you`re a regional guy, eventually you might come to realize that what you have is boring job that doesn`t pay very much.
The way to combat that, at least for me, is too constantly be seeking new challenges and new opportunities. I`ve known colleageues that spent upwards of 20 years at the same company at the same desk. To each his own, but for me, I thrive on new for challenges and opportunities to advance my skills and gain new experiences.