When helping hurts
Sensitivity has two distinct meanings. One is emotional awareness and accurate perception. To be sensitive is to be able to experience fully and correctly. But the second meaning of sensitivity is vulnerability to pain. Often these two forms of sensitivity exist side by side in us. .. because we are sensitive, we pay a price -sooner or later.
When the price is vicarious or secondary traumatic stress disorder (STSD) the pattern is primarily fear, unwanted memory, and preoccupation with another's pain. When the price is Compassion Fatigue, a similar set of symptoms, the pattern is tiredness, emotional depletion, from too much caring and too little self-caring.
The price of Burnout is paid after weeks or months on the job, with relentless responsibility and few emotional rewards. We are past anxiety, guilt and pain. Past sensitivity. We drink, we shout, we resent. We lack humor, tact and grace. Cynicism is our defense against ourselves.
STSD, Compassion Fatigue, Burnout - How do we prevent it? How do we intervene? How do we cope? Above all, be aware. The signs are not that subtle, but we .. are notorious for seeing problems in others and not in ourselves. Have contacts and conversations with peers who are willing to tell us when to take a break. Take a break. Practice what you preach: good meals, sufficient rest, exercise, and alteration of routine. Dr. Carl Bell advises, "good sex." (And he isn't selling Viagra).
Good humor is a gift. But it may not be easy to find a way to smile on this job. ... The homilies about stress reduction may not work when symptoms are entrenched, when the job tension is inescapable.
Clearly, there is no single prescription for the hurting that comes with helping others. So many people, so many professions are affected and afflicted: clergy, nurses, teachers, truckers - to name some who were not named before. Everyone who moves toward the scene to help, everyone who comforts someone who was there, everyone who listens closely, with sensitivity, is a potential casualty. But every one of us is also a source of comfort, information and inspiration.
From http://www.giftfromwithin.org/pdf/helping.pdf
When the price is vicarious or secondary traumatic stress disorder (STSD) the pattern is primarily fear, unwanted memory, and preoccupation with another's pain. When the price is Compassion Fatigue, a similar set of symptoms, the pattern is tiredness, emotional depletion, from too much caring and too little self-caring.
The price of Burnout is paid after weeks or months on the job, with relentless responsibility and few emotional rewards. We are past anxiety, guilt and pain. Past sensitivity. We drink, we shout, we resent. We lack humor, tact and grace. Cynicism is our defense against ourselves.
STSD, Compassion Fatigue, Burnout - How do we prevent it? How do we intervene? How do we cope? Above all, be aware. The signs are not that subtle, but we .. are notorious for seeing problems in others and not in ourselves. Have contacts and conversations with peers who are willing to tell us when to take a break. Take a break. Practice what you preach: good meals, sufficient rest, exercise, and alteration of routine. Dr. Carl Bell advises, "good sex." (And he isn't selling Viagra).
Good humor is a gift. But it may not be easy to find a way to smile on this job. ... The homilies about stress reduction may not work when symptoms are entrenched, when the job tension is inescapable.
Clearly, there is no single prescription for the hurting that comes with helping others. So many people, so many professions are affected and afflicted: clergy, nurses, teachers, truckers - to name some who were not named before. Everyone who moves toward the scene to help, everyone who comforts someone who was there, everyone who listens closely, with sensitivity, is a potential casualty. But every one of us is also a source of comfort, information and inspiration.
From http://www.giftfromwithin.org/pdf/helping.pdf
posted by JPG at
20:59
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