Recognizing and Treating Compassion Fatigue & Burnout with Helping Professions
Our dedication to others makes us well-suited for positions within helping professions; whether you’re a fellow therapist, a medical provider, a first responder, a humanitarian aid worker, the ability to meet humans with unconditional positive regard and empathic understanding is key. Compassion fatigue, secondary trauma, and burnout can affect the best of caregivers.
Burnout is a response to workplace situations, maybe due to a lack of resources, unsustainable work expectations, or competition. The World Health Organization (link) describes burnout as feelings of emotional and physical exhaustion, cynicism, and reduced efficacy due to ongoing stress. Although burnout mirrors depression, the two are not the same. Depression does not necessarily occur in response to any given factor, whereas burnout does. With that said, talking with a therapist to address burnout can be a great first step. A therapist can provide a safe space, with an impartial perspective, who can help you regain self-care practice and increase overall wellbeing and efficacy.
Compassion fatigue is markedly dwindling compassion onset in response to people who suffer from trauma. Secondary traumatic stress, or vicarious stress, can be triggered when hearing about the first-hand trauma experiences by others. I think that Dr. Dain Kloner, a specialist in compassion fatigue, couldn’t have utilized a better analogy in a recent podcast regarding the subject. He said: “As we sit in the room with somebody who is smoking a cigarette. They may be getting all the carcinogens, but it was found later that even secondhand smoke can impact someone the very same way. So, we take on those carcinogens. When we take on the pain of other people, whether you’re a therapist, a priest or anyone in the helping profession, you’re taking on that pain to a relative degree. Your body absorbs it. Your mind absorbs it. Your emotions absorb it. Your spirituality absorbs all that pain.”
If you are experiencing compassion fatigue and burnout, here are a few recommendations.
Lean on the community within your helping profession. Knowing that you’re not alone will reduce your anxiety. Establish nurturing relationships through professional friendships and mentorships. Participate in educational forums to gain new coping skills.
Gain control where control can be gained through boundary setting. Say “no” to tasks that can be said “no” to, schedule regular breaks, and regularly check-in to notice your feelings and physical reactions to stress.
Care for yourself through self-care habits. Focus on hobbies, spend time with loved ones, practice mindfulness, yoga, massage, meditation, make dietary changes, and work to increase sleep.
Why address your compassion fatigue/burnout when your energy could be extending to those in need? Because we would rather have you in the helping profession for the long run, working at your best capacity, then to lose you early to compassion fatigue and burnout. An analogy could be to the benefit of preventive care in medicine- investing in preventative care ends up being more lucrative for insurance companies than treating chronic illness later down the road. Alternatively, we could compare it to the direction given on an airplane- put your oxygen mask on first before others.
Here are additional resources on compassion fatigue and burnout that I found helpful while writing.
Clearly Clinical Podcast Episode 151 “When We’re Not Ok: Understanding and Managing Compassion Fatigue” featuring Dr. Dain Kloner
The New York Times: Burnout and Depression Symptoms
Cleveland Clinic: “What Is Burnout? Here’s how to deal with feeling physically and emotionally tired”
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Counseling for First Responders
Counseling for Mental Health Providers
Helping the Helper: Facilitating Mental Wellness for Police Officers
Stress: Effects on Your Personal Life, Mental Wellbeing, and Physical Health
When to Talk to Your Human Resources Department About Your Mental Health
A Refreshing Take on Burnout and Fatigue: A Christian Perspective
Trauma and How it Has Affected Teaching During the COVID-19 Pandemic
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Interested in Online Counseling Services for Anxiety, Burnout, or Compassion Fatigue as a First Responder?
If you’re a Marylander who knows that counseling is the direction you need to take, the therapists at LifeSpring Counseling Services are here to help. We offer online counseling services for mindfulness, depression, anxiety, trauma, and grief and loss. We also offer Brainspotting as a specialized service, and Brainspotting can be done online, too!
Here’s how you can get started! Online counseling for anxiety, burnout, and compassion fatigue for first responders aren’t the only services offered at our Maryland office
The counselors and social workers at our Maryland office also offer counseling services for trauma, grief and loss, boundary setting, communication skills, and difficult life transitions. We also offer specialized counseling services including Brainspotting and spiritually-integrated counseling. Because we are located next to several local universities, we also work with college students and international students.
Written by: Caroline Masucci, LMSW
Caroline is a Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW) at LifeSpring Counseling Services in Maryland, and she specializes in anxiety, depression, trauma, and communication skills. She works closely with children, teens, and adults.
Photo Credit: Jorge Urosa and Armin Rimoldi
Date of download: 12/19/2022
