If you work in a professional setting that deals with other people’s trauma day in and day out, for example, at a hospital, a psychologist’s office, or a homeless shelter. You may experience a condition of extreme tiredness and desperation, which is called compassion fatigue.
What Exactly Is a Compassion Fatigue?
Compassion fatigue is a term that describes the physical, emotional, and psychological impact of helping others — often through experiences of stress or trauma. Compassion fatigue is often mistaken for burnout, which is a cumulative sense of fatigue or dissatisfaction.
Difference Between Compassion Fatigue And Burnout
Compassion fatigue is exhaustion caused by compassion, whereas burnout refers to the exhaustion caused by constantly being overextended — usually, swamped at work.
According to wellness and life coach Stephanie Bolster McCannon, compassion fatigue and burnout are forms of profound exhaustion, but the two are not synonymous. Burnout encompasses exhaustion from all jobs and doesn’t necessarily result from compassion. Compassion fatigue has burnout as a common symptom, but not everyone who has compassion fatigue feels burned out.
Who Could Be More Affected By Compassion Fatigue?
Compassion fatigue most often happens to people who help others deal with trauma as part of their job. For example, doctors, nurses, social workers, teachers, and therapists, are commonly affected. However, any caring person who is bearing witness to the suffering of others can experience compassion fatigue. In addition, Volunteers and people who have made taking care of a loved one their full- or part-time job can experience compassion fatigue.
Signs of Compassion Fatigue
The symptoms of compassion fatigue often resemble the symptoms of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). These effects of compassion fatigue are varied and can be emotional, physical, or cognitive. These include:
- ♦ Mood Swings
- ♦ Anxiety And Depression
- ♦ Social Detachment
- ♦ Insomnia
- ♦ Appetite Fluctuations
- ♦ Digestive Woes
- ♦ Headaches
- ♦ Generalized Fatigue
- ♦ Inability To Focus
- ♦ Memory Disturbances
- ♦ Reliance On Medication
- ♦ Addictive Behaviors
It is worth mentioning that People with compassion fatigue can usually still feel compassion. However, they may lose the energy, ability, or interest to act on that compassion.
How To Deal With Compassion Fatigue
You can recover from compassion fatigue entirely with the right treatment plan from a health care professional. Luckily, there are ways to both treat and prevent compassion fatigue. So, if you think you’re at risk for compassion fatigue or are currently experiencing it, talk to your employer, health care provider, and support network to devise a solution.
Also, you can follow these steps to handle your compassion fatigue.
Acknowledge What Your Job Requires Of You
You need to become aware of your current experiences and understand the impact of chronic stress and how working with traumatized people has taken its toll on your emotional, mental, and physical state.
Take Space From The Work
That does not mean simply taking a day off. That means phoning a friend or sibling and asking them to take over the emotional labor of caring for your mutual pal or parent for a week or two or taking a two-week cruise, for instance.
Implement Self-Care Habits Into Your Routine
You also need to implement self-care habits into your routine to prevent compassion fatigue from reoccurring. It should not be just an indulgence you take part in when time allows. But You need to alter your lifestyle towards healing deliberately.
Yoga can help you get out of this state. Please check out our article “Discover 7 benefits of Yoga“.
Getting exercise, meditation, mindfulness, spending time outside, and getting quality sleep is very helpful in managing your compassion fatigue.
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