If you are dealing with a community tragedy, learn as much as possible about the event and deal with and articulate the powerful emotions and reactions related to the event
Know your own “triggers” and vulnerable areas and learn to defuse them or avoid them
Resolve your own personal issues and continue to monitor your own reactions to others’ pain
Be human and allow yourself to grieve when bad things happen to others
Remember that “normal responses to abnormal situations” is true for practitioners and clients alike
Develop realistic expectations about the rewards as well as limitations of being an employee like you are, set boundaries for yourself
Become aware of, and alter any irrational beliefs about the limitations of helping
Balance your work with other professional and personal activities that provide opportunities for growth and renewal:
Exercise, garden, walk, clean, leave work at work
Shop
Read good novels
Do nothing
Watch television
Meditate/Pray/Go to church
Get a massage
Cook for friends
Turn music up loud
Socialise with family or friends
Take vacations
Ask for and accept help from others
Find opportunities to acknowledge and work through your experience in a supportive environment
Debrief yourself regularly and build healthy support groups
Seek assistance from co-workers and caregivers who have had similar experiences in your field and have remained healthy and hopeful. Learn from their experience and take their advice.
Delegate responsibilities and get help from others for routine work when appropriate
Develop a healthy support system to protect yourself from further fatigue and emotional exhaustion
Remember that most people do grow and learn from their experiences and so can helpers
Live a healthy, balanced life
Eat nutritious food, exercise, rest, and meditate or pray and take care of yourself as a whole being
Set and keep healthy boundaries for work. Ask yourself “Would the world fall apart if I step away from my work for a day or a week?”
Think about the idea that if you never say “no” what is your “yes” worth?
Find activities that provide opportunities for growth and renewal
Take an honest look at your life before a crisis strikes. Find help to identify your obvious risks and work to correct or minimise them.
Find ways to provide yourself with the emotional and spiritual strength for the future. Develop and reward a sense of humour. Expose yourself to humorous situations.
Learn to laugh, enjoy life, and have healthy personal relationships
Learn to relax by breathing deeply
Avoid chaotic situations and learn simplicity
Take time to return to normal activities regularly
Avoid additional stressful situations
Review how you are spending time
Sleep well
Spend some quiet time alone
Learning mindfulness meditation is an excellent way to ground yourself in the moment and keep your thoughts from pulling you in different directions. The ability to reconnect with a spiritual source will also help you achieve inner balance and can produce an almost miraculous turnaround, even when your world seems at its blackest
Take a bath
Get up early.
Stay overnight somewhere other than your own home to be alone with yourself
Recharge your batteries daily
Something as simple as committing to eating better and stopping all other activities while eating can have an exponential benefit on both your psyche and your physical body. A regular exercise programme can reduce stress, help you achieve outer balance, and re-energise you for time with family and friends.
Hold one focused, connected, and meaningful conversation each day. This will jump-start even the most depleted batteries. Time with family and friends feeds the soul like nothing else and sadly seems to be the first thing to go when time is scarce.
Things to avoid when experiencing compassion fatigue
Avoid making big decisions. Compassion fatigued caregivers should not try to make any major life decisions until they’ve recovered physically, emotionally and spiritually. This is perhaps the most important advice we can give. Don’t quit your job, get a divorce, or spend money on a lavish trip or a new sports car. It might feel great at the time, but a few days or weeks later, the same set of problems will resurface.
Avoid blaming others. Similarly, blaming administration, staff, co-workers, or the “system” will not be productive. Being adversarial will only create further exhaustion and prevent deeper healing that needs to take place. The same recommendation goes for looking for another job. Wait until self-perceptions are more logical and less emotionally charged and until current stress is under control.
Avoid expending energy complaining. Also avoid commiserating with discontented co-workers. “Misery loves company.” It’s easy to fall into the habit of complaining when experiencing compassion fatigue, but it will only make things feel worse. There are other, more constructive environments to share and express feelings in a more therapeutic environment.
Avoid trying a quick fix. Compassion fatigue often makes one vulnerable to addictive behaviours and substance abuse. Many helping professionals try to deal with compassion fatigue by working longer and harder. Other self-medicate with alcohol and prescription drugs. There are a whole host of other addictive behaviours that are used to relieve personal pain. Don’t abuse work, alcohol, or drugs and don’t fall prey to a quick fix. Just as drugs can be addictive and eventually cause a whole different set of problems, the quick fix usually complicates an already overburdened life, escalating the downward spiral to burnout and depression.
Learning Journal Reflection
Review the list of techniques and note in your learning journal:
What are some of the things you have done or techniques you have used to reduce your vulnerability to compassion fatigue or assist colleagues experiencing symptoms of compassion fatigue?
What techniques would you like to explore or apply moving forward?