Burnout is an experience in response to chronic job stressors, understood to be composed of three components: exhaustion, cynicism and inefficacy. Burnout is an occupational hazard among psychotherapists that may result in poorer quality of care for the client and a diminished quality of life for the clinician. Several quantitative studies have shown that psychotherapists are at risk of developing burnout as a result of the demanding nature of their work. While much research has been carried out with psychotherapists who work in organisations, there is a lack of available literature which describes the experience of the psychotherapy practitioner who works in private practice. This study aimed to gain an understanding of psychotherapists’ lived experience of burnout while working exclusively in private practice. Eight in-depth, semi-structured interviews were recorded, transcribed and analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Three superordinate themes were identified: (1) A Professional Identity Crisis: “maybe I just don’t have what it takes?”; (2) The Embodiment of Burnout: “constantly running on red”; and (3) The Process of Rebalancing: “being real”. The participants revealed their sense of disillusionment with their career and with themselves alongside self-criticism and a sense of shame for not meeting their internalised standards. They illuminated their experience of a profound felt-sense of depletion and physical unwellness that accompanied their experience of burnout. They also spoke of their ongoing process of rebalancing rather than recovering from burnout. Participants universally described how they could neither identify nor articulate what was happening to them at the time of burnout. The findings are discussed through the theoretical lenses of identity, embodiment of burnout and a re-evaluation of the work/life balance. This study contributes a unique insight into the experience of burnout as understood by this group of professionals. Resultant recommendations and implications for practice, supervision and training are presented.