Compassion fatigue is something I had never heard discussed in my master’s program (or maybe it was briefly mentioned and I just happened to miss it). We were told over and over again “to take care of ourselves” and “practice self-care” but to be honest, I don’t think any of us knew what that meant in the context of preventing Compassion Fatigue and total burnout in the helping professions. I was still under the naive impression that self-care looked like using my expensive face mask that I hadn’t touched since I bought it.

Fast forward to my first “real” job within the therapy field. I was enthusiastic, optimistic, and ready to take on the world! That was, until about one hour into my first day when I looked around me and noticed how angry, irritable, and overwhelmed the therapists around me were.

The message was loud and clear from one coworker: “In order to get through this job, you’ll need to either drink, exercise, or dissociate.”

I remember pointing out how disillusioned the therapists seemed to be with their work, and another coworker remarked, “Give it a month and you’ll feel the same way.”

Oof.

I didn’t realize it at the moment, but what these previously enthusiastic, compassionate, wonderful human beings were experiencing is something called “Compassion Fatigue”.

Compassion fatigue is defined by the Canadian Medical Association as “the cost of caring for others or for their emotional pain.” This can happen in the medical field, caregiving, counseling, and other helping professions.

Some signs you may have, or are developing, compassion fatigue:

• Feeling hopeless or helpless in the face of patient suffering

• reduced feelings of empathy and sensitivity (*or hyper sensitivity)

• Feeling overwhelmed and exhausted by work demands

• Loss of interest in activities you used to enjoy

• Feeling detached, numb and emotionally disconnected

• Increased anxiety, sadness, anger and irritability

• difficulty sleeping and sleep disturbances

• physical symptoms such as headaches, nausea, upset stomach, and dizziness

• neglect of own self-care

• increase in substance use

• withdrawal, isolation, or interpersonal difficulties

All of these symptoms, over time, can cause our nervous system to become hypersensitive, or shut down, or dysfunctional - all of which can contribute to anxiety disorders and chronic illness and pain flare ups.

So what can you do about it once you’ve spotted it?

Examine the boundaries that have been crossed with work

1. A helpful tool for finding where your boundaries have been crossed is to look for anger or resentment. That often shows us where someone has pressed or bent our boundaries.

Notice if you have stopped taking a lunch break, or if you have started staying late, working overtime, or answering work emails and calls outside of work hours.

“Containment”

Containers are visual guides we use to help ‘contain’ distressing thoughts, memories, or feelings until a later date.

At the end of the work day, imagine a strong, sturdy box that only you have access to. It can be big or small, magical or practical - the only thing that is important is that you stuff all the stories, trauma, and big emotions of the day into that box. Visualize yourself putting that box away until the next day of work (if you decide you want to pick it up or empty it).

Somatic Practice

Our bodies often store the energy and emotions that we stuff down or try to suppress. While at work in the helping profession, we often have to learn how to be nonreactive during times of crisis, which can mean our stress cycle becomes thwarted and overwhlemed.

Check in at the end of your work day or whenever you feel a big emotion arising:

• What do you feel in your body?

• What color is it? Texture? Big/Small? Moving/Stagnant? Hot/Cold?

• Is there anything your body feels like it needs to do? (Yell, scream, cry, throw a tantrum, collapse on the ground, shake, etc.)

• Allow yourself to do this. Get creative! If you’re unsure how to release an emotion physically, like anger, do a quick youtube search for “anger somatic practices” or “releasing sadness somatic practice/exercise” and play around with what you find

This just touches the surface, but it’s a start.

If you’re deeply struggling with compassion fatigue, I recommend working with a professional who is trained and educated in the subject who can help you work out the specific details of how to get you to a better place mentally and physically.

Remember: you deserve care, too.